stories of the Nations 

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CHINA 




IDOL AT THE RACE-COURSE. AMOY. 



THE STORY OF THE NATIONS 



CHINA 



BY 

ROBERT K. DOUGLAS 



NEW YORK 

G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS 

LONDON: T. FISHER UNWIN 
1901 









Ube IftnfcFierboc'-cr iprees, mew Korft 



0^ 



^t 




PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION 



The sudden and important developments which 
have recently been brought about in China have ren- 
dered it advisable to add a chapter to the first edi- 
tion of this work, bringing up the record of events 
to the present time (April, 1901). 

It is difficult to forecast the course which matters 
may take in China in the immediate future, but one 
thing is certain. The Foreign Powers, having col- 
lectively intervened in the affairs of the State, are 
bound in honour to take under their protection the 
new government, under whatever ruler, which will, 
with their approval, be set up in place of the present 
maladministration. This may mean the occupation 
for a time of Peking and the country between that 
capital and the sea, but the Powers, having put their 
hand to the plough, cannot turn back, nor need their 
task be one which is impossible of accomplishment. 

There is throughout China a large body of men, 
strong both unitedly and individually, whose repre- 
sentatives might fairly be constituted into a Council 
of State. Such men would not necessarily be of 
pronounced pro-foreign views, and all the more, 
therefore, would they be welcomed by the immense 



IV PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION 

mass of the people who hold neither with the Man- 
chu party nor with the extreme reformers. Such 
men fully recognise the backward condition of their 
country, and are prepared by the introduction of 
moderate reforms to improve the fiscal system of 
the Empire, and to raise the position of the people, 
while at the same time they would add strength to 
the nation by the adoption of modern arms and ap- 
pliances. A Council formed on these lines would 
save the Empire both from the excesses of the Em- 
press and her clique, and from the crude vagaries of 
K'ang Yuwei and his friends. 

ROBERT K. DOUGLAS. 
Aprils 1901. 




PREFACE 



The antiquity of China is so great, and the history 
of the Empire covers so vast a period that it was 
plainly impossible to compress the whole subject 
within the limits of a single volume of this series. It 
was determined, therefore, to limit the record, in the 
present instance, to the annals of the Empire from 
the time of Marco Polo to the present day, leaving 
the earlier history of the country to appear later. 

As is well known, the Chinese possess histories of 
their various dynasties, and they attempt to insure 
that these should be truthful records by ruling that 
the events of each dynasty should not be described 
by contemporary historians but by authors under the 
succeeding regime. It might be supposed that this 
system would entail the compilation of biased and 
^;tr /^r/^ chronicles. But happily Chinese historians, 
like the rest of their countrymen, are so entirely 
devoid of patriotism that they have no inducement 
to pervert facts, or to trim their sails to the neces- 
sities of party feeling. 

Generally truthful as these historians are, however, 
their works yet labour under the defect common to 



\-l PREFACE 

all Oriental histories of being records of the Court and 
camp rather than of the life of the people ; and it is 
only by reference to miscellaneous works that it is 
possible to obtain the side-lights necessary to illus- 
trate the true progress of the nation. 

Among the authorities I have consulted are the 
following : — The native dynastic histories ; the Sheng 
Wu Ki^ or the wars of the present dynasty, by Wei 
Yuen ; various native biographical works ; the Peking 
Gazette ; the Parliamentary Blue Books ; the Histories 
of Wells Williams, Boulger, and Macgowan ; " The 
Jesuits in China," by R. Jenkins ; " A Narrative of 
Events in China," by Lord Loch ; " The Ever Victo- 
rious Army," by Andrew Wilson, &c. 

ROBERT K. DOUGLAS. 
January, 1899. 




CONTENTS 



The Early History of the Empire 

Akkadian affinities — The reign of Yao — The Shang dynasty 
— The Chow dynasty — Confucius — Teachings of Confucius — 
The burning of the books — The reign of Kaoti — The intro- 
duction of Buddhism — The T'ang dynasty — The K'itan 
Tartars. 



PAGE 

1-23 



n. 

The Yuan and Ming Dynasties . . . 24-63 

The first Catholic missionaries — Kublai Khan — Kublai's 
campaigns — The Burmese campaign — Kublai's tolerance — W 
Death of Kublai — A rebellious monk — The Hanlin College 
— The close of Hungwu's reign — Yunglo's administration — 
The Emperor a prisoner — Ricci's religious successes — A 
Japanese invasion — An Empress Regent — Spain and the 
Philippines — A rebellious son — K'anghsi and the mis- \^ 
sionaries — Missionary quarrels. 



III. 

The Rise of the Manchus 



. 64-130 



Nurhachu — Manchu victories — Chinese soldiers — Portuguese 
auxiliaries — A Chinese Joan of Arc — Death of the Emperor 



Vlll CONTENTS 



—A treacherous plot — The first Manchu artillery — A 
desperate expedient — Capture of Peking — An outraged 
husband — A great battle — Removal of capital — The last 
throes of a dynasty — Sack of Yangchow — A pirate — 
Koxinga — Death of Kwei Wang— ^ rebuff to Russia — A 
slaughter of women — K'anghsi's Kolerance — Wu Sankwei 
invited to Peking — Imperial barbarities — Tartar irruptions — 
Defeat of the Russians — Tartar treachery — K'anghsi's 
Letter of Indictment — K'anghsi before his God — A diamond 
jubilee — Strictures on strange sects — Bishop Maigrot — ^Jesuit 
investments — Jesuit virtues. *^ 



IV. 

The Reigns of Yungcheng and Ch'ienlung. 131-138 

Too potent a satrap — A Portuguese envoy — Imperial 
disasters. 

V. 

The Reign of Ch'ienlung {continued) . . 139-171 

*'Vse Victis" — A Mongol campaign — Triumphant generals — 
Emigration of Tourgots — "The flight of a Tartar tribe" — 
A Burmese war — Peace with Burma — A rebellion of 
aborigines — Imperial bad faith — Fighting in Formosa — 
Revolt in Cochin China — A Lama's revenge — Fall of 
Tashilumbo — Submission of the Gurkhas. 



VI. 

The Opening of Diplomatic Intercourse with 
China 1 72-181 

Opening of trade — An adventurous trader — An Englishman / 
strangled-^ord Macartney's presents — Lord Macartney at ^ 
Jehol — Ill-gotten gains — Ch'ienlung abdicates. 



CONTENTS IX 

VII. 

PAGE 

The Reign of Chiach'ing, and the First Years 

OF HIS Successor 189-206 

Would-be assassips — China appeals for help — Russia and 
the K'ot'ow — RM.e treatment of Lord Amherst — A reproving 
statesman — A filial eulogy — Russian college at Peking — A 
vicious prince. 

VIII. 

Foreign Relations with China . . . 207-253 

Opposition to opium — Tyranny at Canton — Chinese im- 
pertinence — Insincere anti-opiumists — Lin's conditions — A 
statesman's career — ^Lin's fall — Preparations for war — British 
victories — Chinese inconsistencies — Peace concluded — 
Massacre of Englishmen — Secret societies — The Cantonese 
obdurate — Hung's visions — Rebel successes — An impious 
proclamation — The T'ienwang called to account — A march 
on Peking — Rebel reverses. 

IX. 

The Second China War .... 254-274 

An ominous portent — Imperial remonstrances — Bowring and 
Yeh — The Arrow affair— Lord Elgin appointed — Keppel's 
attack on Fatshau — Capture of Yeh — The Government of 
Canton — The capture of the Taku forts — A reward for 
^«^arkes's head. 

X. 

The War of i860 ...... 275-311 

The defeat at Taku — Sankolinsin's tactics — Preliminary 
skirmishes — The Viceroy's treachery — The natives friendly — 
Negotiations for peace — Parkes and Loch — A treacherous 
capture — Scene in the Board of Punishments — The French 
in Yuan-ming-yuan — Release of Parkes and Loch — Signature 
of Treaty — Sankolinsin degraded — Jehol and Peking — 
Execution of conspirators. 



X CONTENTS 

XL 

PAGE 

The T'aip'ing Rebellion .... 312-336 

The faithful prince — Imperialist disasters — Ward's force — 
The turn of the tide — Quarrel between Li and Burgev^ine — 
The Ever Victorious Army — A mutiny in the ranks — 
Disaffection at Soochow — Li's yellow jacket — Fall o' 
Nanking — The Ever Victorious Army disbanded. 



XIL 

The Nienfei and Mohammedan Rebellions . 337-359 

Mohammedans in Yunnan — A viceregal suicide — Mo- 
hammedan disaffection — Treacherous murders — Massacres 
in Tali Fu — A Mongolian campaign — Imperial victories — 
The Tsungli Yamen — Foreign arsenal — A riot at Yangchow 
. — Murder of a Frenchman. 



XIII. 

The Close of T'ungchih's Reign and the First 

Years of that of Kwanghsu . . . 360-432 

^The Tientsin massacre — Wade's impeachment — Li Hung- 
chang at Tientsin — Execution of criminals — The missionary t-^ 
difficulty — The choice of an Imperial bride — Nuptial 
ceremonies — The audience question — In the Imperial 
presence — Official impertinence — A difficulty with Japan — 
Death of T'ungchih — The Empress's virtues — The murder 
of Margary — ^ Affairs in Yunnan — A Chinese minister at St. 
James's — A famine — The Wusung railway — Another Korean 
difficulty — The Korean Regent kidnapped — Military reform 
^^^ — The P'rench in Tongking — Defeat of the French — 
Destruction of the Chinese fleet — The conclusion of peace — 
Naval eccentricities — Restoration of Port Hamilton — The 
Dowager Empress — An Imperial exhortation — The Em- 
peror's marriage — A gracious edict — The audience question 
settled — Riots on the Yangtsze — Political insincerity. 



CONTENTS XI 

XIV. 

PAGE 

The War with Japan, and Recent Events . 433-449 

The battle of Asan — A naval engagement — ^The fall of Port 
Arthur — Suicide of Ting — The Dowager Empress's Jubilee — 
The impotence of China — Foreign aggressions — The prospect 
in the future. 



XV. 



Current Events 
Index 



450 
469 




LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



idol at the race-course, amoy . 

t'a ki, chow sin's empress . 

confucius with his disciples 

grave of confucius 

outside the walls, peking . 

the old foreign factories, canton 

chinese barrow-man going home 

a monument at moukden 

a manchu official and lady 

chinese native soldiers, with officer 

a street scene in moukden 

a chinese general 

a manchurian theatre 

travelling in manchuria 

mining in shansi . 

a manchu lady 



Frontispiece 

PAGE 

8 

12 

13 

25 

49 
59 
65 
66 

69 

73 
75 
77 
82 

85 



XIV 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



MANCHU WOMEN AND CHILD , 

A " CAMEL-BACK " BRIDGE 

DECAPITATION . . . . 

A MANCHURIAN LANDSCAPE 

A STREET SCENE IN PEKING . 

A CHINESE BARROW RIDE 

THE LAMA TEMPLE AT PEKING 

A CHINESE DINNER-PARTY 

A CHINESE COOLIE . 

OPIUM SMOKERS 

PRISONERS WEARING THE '* CANGUE 

A RIVER SCENE 

H.E. SIR HARRY S. PARKES, K.C.B. 

ENTRANCE TO THE TSUNGLI YAMEN, PEKING 

AFTER CAPTURE OF TAKU FORTS 

A PEASANT WOMAN AND CHILDREN 

SIR THOMAS FRANCIS WADE, K.C.B. 

PAGODA AT YUAN-MING-YUAN, NEAR PEKING 

ANGLO-CHINESE CONTINGENT — ARTILLERY 

COURTYARD OF TSUNGLI YAMEN AT PEKING 

THE COURTYARD OF AN INN IN MANCHURIA 

A MANCHU SWEETMEAT-SELLER 

A HOUSE IN SHANSI .... 

A ROADWAY SCENE IN KOREA , 

A KOREAN SEDAN-CHAIR .... 



PAGE 
89 

92 

96 

99 
120 

147 
167 
179 
181 
209 
223 
229 

239 

256 
283 
286 
291 
299 
323 
354 
366 

372 
393 
397 
399 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



XV 



INTERIOR OF THE TSUNGLI YAMEN, PEKING 

THE TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, PEKING 

CURRENT COIN 

A CHINESE PROFESSOR 

A HOUSE IN MANCHURIA 

A MANCHURIAN CART 

A JINRIKSHA . 

A DAGOBA AT MOUKDEN 





PAGE 




. 408 




420 




. 423 




• 427 




' 437 




« 439 




• 441 




' 445 




THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

Of all the great Empires of antiquity, China alone 
has preserved its existence in defiance of the dis- 
integrating effects of time and the assaults of her 
enemies. While the ancient Empires of Egypt, 
Babylonia, and Assyria have waxed and waned, 
she has maintained her position in the Eastern 
world, and has enlarged rather than diminished 
her boundaries. 

The earliest existing records of the people describe 
them as a small body of settlers dwelling in the fertile 
regions of North-eastern China, in the neighbourhood 
of the Yellow River. By degrees as they consolidated 
their Empire and established a definite form of 
government, they forced back the native tribes which 
had originally hemmed them in, and extended their rule 
over the regions lying to the west and south of their 
original location. As centuries went by they threw 
out colonies into the outer regions, and after the 
manner which may still be observed in their dealings 
with the Manchurians and Mongolians, made these 
colonies first centres for the spread of Chinese 

2 * 



2 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

influence, and then bases on which to work the 
lever of empire. Pushing on in this way they 
crossed the Yang-tsze-kiang southwards in the 
third century B.C., and thenceforth adding province 
to province they established the Empire as it now 
exists. Throughout their whole history they have 
shown a marked capacity for acquiring territory, and 
this rather by the peaceful method of settling on the 
neighbouring lands than by invasion and conquest. 
They have none of the characteristics of a warlike 
race, and their triumphs over less cultivated peoples 
have been gained rather by peaceful advance than by 
force of arms. In almost every respect we are taught 
by their records that they differed essentially from 
the tribes by whom they first found themselves sur- 
rounded, and hence the question naturally arises who 
they were, and whence they came ? 

Many suggestions have been made as to the earlier 
habitat of this people. It has been surmised that 
they may have migrated from the plains of Sennaar ; 
that they were a colony from Egypt ; and that they 
possessed a Scythic origin. No proofs in support of 
these guesses at history have been, however, forth- 
coming, and it was reserved for the late Professor 
Terrien de Lacouperie to establish with many incon- 
testable proofs the theory that they had migrated 
eastward from a region on the south of the Caspian 
Sea in about the twenty-third century B.C. In 
support of his proposition Professor Terrien de 
Lacouperie was able to show a marked connection 
between many of the primitive written characters 
of the languages of Akkadia and China ; as well as 



AKKADIAN AFFINITIES 3 

a marked affinity between the religious, social, and 
scientific institutions and beliefs of the two peoples. 
In the twelve Pastors, among whom the Emperor 
Yao (2085-2004 B.C.) apportioned the Empire, he 
saw a reflection of the twelve Pastor Princes of 
Susiana. In the worship of Shang-Ti and the six 
Honoured Ones he recognised the supreme god and 
the six subordinate deities of the Susians. In the 
knowledge possessed by the Chinese of astronomy 
and medicine he recognised an identity with the 
condition of those sciences in Mesopotamia ; and he 
also drew attention to the fact which recent excavations 
in Babylonia have brought to our knowledge, that 
the canals and artificial water-ways of China suggest 
a striking likeness to the canals with which the whole 
of Babylonia must have been intersected, and which 
cannot but have been as characteristic a feature of 
that country as similar works are of China at the 
present day. 

Vast migrations have been by no means uncommon 
in Asiatic history, and even as late as the end of last 
century we know that a body of Kalmucks, numbering 
six hundred thousand, journeyed from the frontiers of 
Russia to the confines of China. This migration, 
which De Quincey has made immortal, is but an 
example of the movements which have constantly 
taken place in the populations of Asia. Plague, 
famine, political disturbances have all had their 
influences in the constant distribution of the tribes 
and nations of the East, and there is, therefore, nothing 
improbable in the supposed movement of the Chinese 
tribes from Mesopotamia to the banks of the Yellow 



4 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

River. It is unnecessary here to discuss at any 
further length the early habitat of the Chinese 
people. In this work we are mainly interested in 
them after their arrival in China, and for the purpose 
of this preliminary sketch we are not called upon to 
go beyond the traditional records of the nation. 

In the native histories the records of the race are 
traced back to a period which dwarfs into insignifi- 
cance the antiquity of Egypt or Chaldea, and though 
their earlier pages rest on no better foundation than 
traditional fables, there is yet preserved a substratum 
of fact on which it is safe to rest. Like the first 
founders of every Imperial race the Chinese leaders 
of antiquity are represented as possessing the wisdom, 
and almost the power of the gods. One of their first 
leaders, Fuhsi by name, has earned eternal fame as 
having designed the six classes of written characters ; 
invented the system of horary and cyclical notation ; 
and established the laws of marriage, as well as 
having devised the celebrated eight Diagrams which 
are popularly supposed to be the basis of the 
renowned " Book of Changes." His successor, 
Shennung, is supposed to have instructed the 
people in agriculture ; to have established public 
markets ; and to have discovered the medicinal 
properties lying dormant in the herbs of the field. 
In the portraits common to official biographies, this 
ancient sage is depicted chewing a long stalk of some 
herb, which from the expression of his face is plainly 
unpleasant to the taste, however efficacious it may be 
as a medicine. Hwangti, the next sovereign, came to 
the throne, such as it was, in 2332 B.C. Like those 



THE REIGN OF YAO 5 

of his predecessors his reign was long, and is said to 
have extended over a full century. He taught his 
people to manufacture utensils of wood, pottery, 
and metal, and invented a medium of currency. 
Professor Terrien de Lacouperie finds a resemblance 
between his second name, Nai Hwangti, and the 
Nakhunte of Elamite history, and is of opinion that 
he never ruled in China. But however that may be, 
native historians dwell on his wisdom and virtue with 
untiring unction. 

With the advent to power of the Emperor Yao 
(2085-2004 B.C.), the purely fabulous chapters of 
Chinese history may be said to come to a close, and 
at this point Confucius takes up the pen. According 
to that sage Yao was " all informed, intelligent, ac- 
complished, and thoughtful." With a godlike instinct 
he ruled the " black-haired " race, and by the influence 
of his example, as Confucius insists, he led all men 
to him. Under his benign administration the frontiers 
of the Empire were extended from 23° to 40° N., and 
from 6° west of Peking to 10° east of that city. On 
his becoming a " Guest on high," Shun was chosen to 
succeed him, and it was during the reign of this 
monarch that a great flood, which was considered by 
the early Jesuit missionaries to have been the flood 
of Noah, devastated large districts of the Chinese 
states. Pace the missionaries, this catastrophe was 
probably nothing more than one of those outbreaks 
of the Yellow River which periodically lay waste the 
country lying on its banks. In this case Yii, a certain 
official, was appointed to lead the waters back to their 
original channel. His labours, we are told, extended 



6 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

over nine years, and we are asked to believe that so 
absorbed was he in his work that he thrice passed the 
door of his house without once stopping to enter. As 
a reward for this signal service he was raised to the 
throne on the death of Shun, and became the first 
sovereign of the Hsia dynasty (i 954-1 687 B.C.). 
Among the other exploits of this sovereign was a 
redivision of the Empire into nine instead of eleven 
Provinces, a description of which rearrangement was 
engraved, for the benefit of posterity, on nine brazen 
vessels ; and as a crowning testimony to his worth, 
an inscription on a stone monument, raised for the 
purpose on Mount Heng, recorded the benefits which 
he is believed to have conferred on his subjects. 

Sixteen sovereigns ruled in succession to Yii, and 
as has been constantly the case, not only in China 
but in other Oriental countries, there was a woful 
falling off in his successors on the throne from the 
higher standard which the founder of the dynasty had 
set them. The earnestness and single-mindedness 
which belonged to Yu, and on which the native 
historians delight to linger, no longer animated his 
unworthy followers on the throne. Self-indulgence 
and cruelty became more and more accentuated as 
ruler after ruler accepted the sceptre of empire, until 
all the worst passions of his predecessors found ex- 
pression in the conduct of Chieh Kwei, who reigned 
from 1739 to 1687 B.C. According to the traditional 
belief of the ancient Chinese, a belief which was 
strongly insisted upon by the philosopher Mencius, 
it becomes the bounden duty of a people to raise the 
standard of rebellion when the ruler persistently 



THE SHANG DYNASTY 7 

acts in opposition to the laws of heaven. Such a 
crisis had now arrived. By public oppression of the 
people, and private outrages on their properties and 
persons, Chieh Kwei placed himself beyond the pale. 
With one consent his subjects rose against him under 
the leadership of a man named T'ang, " the Com- 
plete," who justified this epithet by dethroning the 
Emperor and proclaiming himself sovereign by the 
grace of God. 

The story of the Shang or Yin Dynasty, as it is 
variously called, is but a repetition of that of Hsia. 
The virtuous impetus which placed the sceptre in 
T'ang's hand was gradually dissipated in the twenty- 
eight reigns which followed in succession to his. 
Historians make a distinction in favour of one or two 
of his descendants, but the general tendency was 
downwards, and like another Chieh Kwei, Chow Sin 
brought the dynasty to an end by his crimes and 
iniquities. " Wild extravagance, unbridled lust, and 
the most ferocious cruelty, are enumerated among 
his vices. To please his infamous concubine, T'aki, 
he constructed vast palaces and pleasure grounds 
where every form of wild debauchery was continually 
practised." As was said by a famous statesman of 
the time, " the house of Yin can no longer exercise 
rule over the four quarters of the Empire. The great 
deeds of our founder have enjoyed and still enjoy a 
wide renown, but we by being lost and maddened 
with wine have destroyed the effects of his virtue in 
these latter days. The people of Yin, both small and 
great, are given to highway robberies, villainies, and 
treachery. The nobles and officers imitate one 



8 



THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 



iLi^ 



another in violating the laws. Evil-doers receive no 
punishment, and the people rise up and commit 
violent outrages on one another. The dynasty of 
Yin is now sinking to its ruin. Its condition is like 
one crossing a river who can find neither ford nor 
bank." 

To the remonstrances of his ministers Chow Sin 
turned a deaf ear, and, in a con- 
versation reported by Confucius, 
comforted himself with the reflec- 
tion that as Emperor he was under 
the protection of high Heaven. 
" Your crimes," replied the officer, 
" which are many, are chronicled 
above, and how can you speak of 
your fate as though it were in the 
charge of Heaven. Yin will shortly 
perish. As to your deeds they can 
but bring ruin on the country.'' 
This prophecy was soon to be ful- 
filled. A leader of rebellion was 
found in the " Warlike Prince," who 
drove the Emperor from his throne 

This 

action, which has all the appearance 
of being revolutionary, was nevertheless strictly in 
accordance with Chinese morality and met with the 
entire approval of the philosopher, Mencius. " He 
who outrages benevolence," said that sage, " is called 
a ruffian : he who outrages righteousness is called a 
villain. The ruffian and the villain we call a mere 
fellow. I have heard of the cutting off of the fellow 




T A Ki, CHOW SINS and Urged him to suicide. 

EMPRESS. ^ 



THE CHOW DYNASTY 9 

Chow, but I have not heard of the putting of a ruler 
to death." 

Following the usual precedent of successful rebel 
leaders the "Warlike Prince" seized the Imperial 
sceptre with the full approval of the nation. His- 
torians of every class, from Confucius downwards, 
have poured unceasing praise on the administration 
of the ursurper, who, if these authorities are to be 
believed, was graced with every virtue that befits a 
monarch. By his magnanimous conduct he fulfilled 
the criterion of an exemplary ruler laid down by 
Confucius, by drawing all men to him. During his 
reign Embassies arrived from the Kings of Korea, 
Cochin China, and other distant regions. In his 
warlike expeditions he was uniformly successful, and 
he left to his successor a frontier which was respected 
by his enemies, and an Empire which was the envy 
of his allies. Happily for the State the succeeding 
two or three sovereigns worthily maintained the 
standard set them by their great predecessor. They 
consolidated the Empire and secured the loyalty and 
service of the feudal states. History does not 
concern itself much with the majority of the later 
rulers of the house of Chow, as the new dynasty was 
styled, but draws attention with some emphasis to 
Mu Wang (B.C. 1001-946), and finds food for 
reflection in his conduct. To his charge is laid the 
crime of having introduced the system of redeeming 
offences by the payment of fines, and of having thus 
set the example of bribery and corruption which has 
since wrought such havoc in the morals of the people 
and their rulers. On the other side of the shield 



10 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

there is told of him that he prosecuted successful 
wars against the tribes on the western frontier, a fact 
which has given rise to a legendary account of a 
journey which he is supposed to have made to the 
borders of the Lake of Gems, where he is said to 
have been hospitably entertained, with all the 
delights of a Mussulman's Paradise, by the " Royal 
Mother of the West." 

Rightly to understand the condition of the country 
at this period, it is necessary to remember that the 
kingdom was formed of a congerie of states, each of 
which was ruled over by its own sovereign, and each 
of which owed the limp and uncertain fealty common 
to subordinate Oriental princedoms to the elected 
sovereign of the predominant kingdom of Chow. No 
common patriotism bound these feudatories to their 
liege lord, and it was only by the strength of his 
right arm that he preserved his lordship over them. 
Any sign of the weakening of his authority was 
naturally the signal for a rising on the part of the 
more restless princekins against his power. As time 
went on and the Chow state fluctuated in wealth and 
influence, the uprisings of the more ambitious feuda- 
tories became more threatening and frequent. The 
country became distracted by obscure quarrels, and 
open disorder, until as the philosopher Mencius 
graphically writes : " A host marches and stores of 
provisions are consumed, the hungry are deprived of 
their food, and there is no rest for those who are 
called on to toil. Maledictions are uttered from one 
to another with eyes askance, and the people proceed 
to the commission of wickedness. Then the royal 



CONFUCIUS 1 1 

ordinances are violated, the people are oppressed, and 
the supplies of food and drink flow away like water. 
The rulers yield themselves to the current, or they 
urge their way against it. They are wild, they are 
lost. The crime of him who connives at it and aids 
the wickedness of his ruler is small, but the crime of 
him who anticipates and excites that wickedness is 
great. The great officers of the present day are all 
guilty of this latter crime, and I say that they are 
sinners against the princes. Sage kings do not arise, 
and the princes of the states ^wq reins to their lusts. 
In their stalls there are fat beasts, and in their 
stables there are fat horses ; but their people have the 
look of hunger, and in their fields there are those who 
have died of famine. This is leading on beasts to 
devour men. 

It was while the country was in a condition similar 
to that described above that Confucius was born. 
We might leave the legendary accounts of his 
miraculous birth and early days to the recounters of 
fables, and it is only necessary for us here briefly to 
consider his influence on politics. To students of 
Chinese history that influence appears to be out of 
all proportion to the weight of his words, and the 
convincing force of his doctrines. He found the 
Empire tempest-tossed with faction and disloyalty, 
and he believed it to be his mission to lead back the 
sovereign and his people to the orthodox condition 
of affairs which existed when Yao meted out the 
heavens and the " Warlike Prince " exercised his 
patriarchal sway. His constant theme was the virtue 
of the ancient sages, and his panacea for all political 



12 



THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 



ills was a return to the traditional virtue of those 
great men. During his lifetime he was scouted by 
not a few rulers and princekins, and achieved success 
only when his influence was regarded as necessary 
for the support of some ruler or cause. It was only 
after his death that people turned to him as to a 
great leader of mankind, and for the last three and 
twenty centuries his teachings have been the guiding 
star of the nation through all its many changes and 




COiNFUClUS WITH tils mSClPLliS. 



chances. Loudly he deplored the anarchy of the 
time, and as an illustration in point it is told of him 
that on one occasion as he journeyed from his native 
state to that of Ch'i he saw a woman weeping by a 
tomb at the roadside, to whom, having compassion 
upon her, he sent a disciple to ask the cause of her 
grief " You weep," said the messenger, " as if you 
had experienced sorrow upon sorrow." " I have/' 
said the woman. " My father-in-law was killed here 



TEACHINGS OF CONFUCIUS 



13 



by a tiger, and my husband also ; and now my son 
has met the same fate." '*Why then do you not 
move from this place ? " asked Confucius. " Because 




GRAVE OF CONFUCIUS. 



here there is no oppressive government," answered 
the woman. Turning to his disciples Confucius 
remarked, "My children, remember this, oppressive 
government is fiercer than a tiger." 



14 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

In spite, however, of the warnings of Confucius 
and the more philosophical teachings of Lao Tsze, 
the founder of Taoism, disorders increased on every 
side, and there were not wanting ominous signs 
which were regarded by native authorities as fore- 
telling the downfall of the Chow Dynasty. The 
brazen vessels which had been set up by the great 
Yli were seen to shake and totter as though 
presaging a political catastrophe ; famine and pesti- 
lence stalked through the land ; and on all sides 
men's hearts failed them for fear. It is at such times 
as these that an ambitious leader can find his 
opportunity, and in this case the ruler of the Ch'in 
Dynasty, seizing his advantage, made war against the 
Imperial state, which was already tottering to its fall. 
After a series of victories he claimed the throne by 
right of conquest, and established himself as the first 
sovereign of the short-lived Ch'in Dynasty. Neither 
this man nor his two successors on the throne 
were men of mark, and if it had not been for the 
sovereign who followed them the Imperial line 
would have sunk into oblivion " unwept, unhonoured, 
and unsung." They initiated little and accomplished 
little, but this at least cannot be said of their 
successor. 

The evils of the feudal system had long been 
patent, but no one had hitherto arisen who was bold 
enough so to fly in the face of precedent and history 
as to attempt a reform in the constitution. Ascribing 
all the evils under which his country had so long 
suffered to the system which for so many years had 
guided its destiny, Shih Hwangti determined once 



THE BURNING OF THE BOOKS 1 5 

and for all to put an end to the petty jealousies 
among the States by establishing an Empire, and 
proclaiming himself the first Universal Sovereign. 

To this reform the literary classes offered a deter- 
mined opposition. All the national love for antiquity 
accentuated by the sayings and writings of Confucius 
and his followers was outraged by this draconic 
measure. They pointed back to the halcyon days 
when the " Warlike Prince " and his immediate 
followers ruled over the United States in peace and 
harmony, and quoted the works edited by Confucius 
as evidence of the prosperous condition which existed 
under those favoured circumstances. So serious was 
the opposition thus presented that the Emperor, who 
knew nothing of half measures, determined to wrest 
from his critics the evidences which they were so fond 
of producing. With this intention he issued an edict 
commanding that all the existing literature in the 
country, with the exception of works on divination 
and medicine, should be destroyed. From the nature 
of this decree it was plainly impossible that it could 
be carried out in its entirety. But so far as possible 
it was given effect to, notwithstanding the determined 
resistance of the Literati, many of whom perished at 
the block rather than commit their cherished volumes 
to the flames. To a certain extent the immediate 
effect of the measure was successful, and the pros- 
perity which the new policy secured for the nation at 
large gained for its author very general support. 
With genuine zeal he also set himself to improve the 
material condition of the country, and recognising 
the importance, both political and commercial, of 



1 6 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

providing means of communication between the 
several States, he constructed roads in all directions, 
spanned the river with bridges, and encouraged by 
every method in his power the means of locomotion. 
At this time the Tartars were constantly threatening 
the northern frontier, and realising that it was as 
necessary to protect his subjects from foreign foes as 
to promote their internal prosperity, he constructed 
the Great Wall which, stretching from the sea at the 
1 20th degree of longitude, and fringing the northern 
frontier of the Empire to the looth degree, still 
stands as a monument of the energetic adminis- 
tration of this great Sovereign. Unhappily, no 
hereditary instincts guided his successor into his 
paths, and during the short reign — three years — of 
this last Emperor of the Ch'in Dynasty, the country, 
instead of advancing toward consolidation, became 
the prey of constant civil war, and of every form of 
brigandage. 

With dramatic propriety a leader arose at this 
troublous period who showed himself to be a man 
standing head and shoulders above his compeers. 
The historian of the Han Dynasty tells us that, like 
another Macbeth, when first taking the field this man 
encountered a soothsayer who foretold his future great- 
ness. With commendable rapidity this prophecy was 
fulfilled, and the object of it was universally hailed 
as the first Emperor of a new dynasty, to which he 
gave the title of Han from the name of his native 
state. Time had at length accustomed the people of 
all classes to the abolition of the feudal States, and 
the new Emperor, Kaoti, felt that there was no 



THE REIGN OF KAOTI 1 7 

longer any need to cut the nation adrift from the 
sheet anchor of its native Hterature. The Litei^ati 
also were still hankering after their literary gods. 
Their influence was also plainly an appreciable 
quantity, and Kaoti determined to secure it on his 
behalf by resuscitating such works as it was possible 
to recover. Under his protecting influence the 
Literati undertook the congenial task of searching 
for any stray copies of the classics and other works 
which may have escaped the holocaust of the books. 
Phoenix-like the old literature rose from its ashes. 
From the sides of caves, from the roofs of houses, 
and the banks of rivers, volumes were produced by 
those who had risked their lives for their preservation, 
and history states that from the lips of old men were 
taken down ancient texts which had everywhere 
perished except in the retentive memories of veteran 
scholars. While reversing this part of the work of 
the first great Emperor, Kaoti followed his example 
in still further improving the means of communica- 
tion in the Empire, and to engineers employed by 
him belongs the credit, among other enterprises, of 
having constructed the first suspension bridges 
known to exist in the world. 

The Han period is universally regarded by China- 
men as one of the most glorious epochs in their 
history. They know no prouder title than that by 
which they delight to be called, the Sons of Han, and 
this is no doubt mainly due to the extraordinary 
revival of letters which took place under the new 
line of Sovereigns. It is true that Kaoti shared to 
some extent the suspicions entertained of the Literati 

3 



1 8 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

by the burner of the books, but his successors, taking 
a truer view of the position, did all that lay in their 
power to encourage the literary spirit of the nation. 
So keen was the zeal of the people in the cause that 
not only were the old texts restored, but a new and 
scholarly school of letters was brought into being. 
In every branch of literature the greatest activity was 
displayed, and whereas it may be said that when 
Kaoti ascended the throne in 206 B.C. polite literature 
was non-existent, the fact remains that before the 
dawn of the Christian era the Imperial library pos- 
sessed upon its shelves 3,123 works on the classics, 
2,705 on philosophy, and 1,383 on poetry. But not 
alone in the peaceful paths of literature did the 
Empire make giant strides at this period. The 
nation's arms and diplomacy were carried far beyond 
the frontier into the little known region of Central 
Asia. In the second century B.C. the envoy Chang 
Ch'ien visited the Court of Eastern Turkestan, and 
two centuries later an army under General Pan 
Ch'ao marched to Khoten, and even carried their 
country's flag to the shores of the Caspian Sea. On 
the southern and north-eastern frontiers. Cochin 
China, and the Liaotung peninsula, which has figured 
so prominently of late in Eastern politics, were con- 
quered and reduced to the condition of feudatories, 
while Yunnan was incorporated into the Empire. 

But by no means the least momentous event of the 
period was the introduction of Buddhism. The 
histories affirm that one night the Emperor Mingti 
(a.d. 58-76) saw in a vision on his bed a golden 
image which bade him send to the western countries 



THE INTRODUCTION OF BUDDHISM I9 

to search for Buddha, and for books and images to 
illustrate the doctrines of the holy man. In obedience 
to this command he, without loss of time, despatched 
envoys to India, who after an absence of eleven 
years returned, bringing with them books, images, 
and drawings, together with an ordained priest of 
the new faith. This pioneer missionary was followed 
by others who, with extraordinary diligence, trans- 
lated a number of the Sanscrit Sutras into Chinese. 
But all these achievements failed to preserve the 
dynasty from that de^cadence which seems to be the 
natural fate of Chinese Imperial Houses. Towards 
the end of the second century of our era there 
occurred all those signs and symptoms of an im- 
pending political change to which the nation had 
now become accustomed. Three leaders arose. One 
in the state of Shuh, one in Wei, and one in Wu. 
Against these men Hsienti (190-221), the reigning 
sovereign, was unable to maintain his position, and 
having retired with a certain pusillanimity into 
private life, left his Empire to be contended for by 
the three chieftains. Then followed a period of 
bitter internecine strife, and the period is notorious 
in Chinese history for the more than usually savage 
wars which disturbed the peace and well-being of the 
people. Weary of the tumult under which they 
suffered, the nation welcomed the advent of a new 
dynasty, that of the Western Chin, in the year 265. 

Buddhism, which had hitherto only received partial 
support, now gained powerful protectors in the sove- 
reigns of the new line. It was during this period 
that the Chinese Buddhist Fa-hsien, made an expe- 



20 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

dition to India to examine the sites sacred to the 
sage, and to possess himself of such canonical works 
as were still unknown to his country-men. After an 
absence of fourteen years he returned by sea from 
Ceylon, bringing with him a library of books and 
notes which in subsequent years of leisure enabled 
him to write the interesting record of his travels 
which is known to European readers through the 
fascinating translations of Remusat and Beal. At the 
close of the Chin Dynasty in 419 the Empire again 
suffered division, and for a hundred and sixty years, 
six states fought for supremacy in the distracted 
provinces. A short dynasty (about thirty years) 
followed which was notorious only for the reign of 
one sovereign, Yangti, who devoted himself with 
laudable energy to the construction of canals in the 
eastern and central portions of the Empire where 
alone they were possible. On the ashes of this 
dynasty rose the house of T'ang whose appearance 
on the Imperial stage opened the period which is 
well described as the Augustan age of Chinese 
literature. The keynote of the great Emperors of 
this line was to restore in their fulness the ancient 
beliefs and traditions which had been consecrated by 
the approval of Confucius. In pursuance of this 
tendency many of them discouraged in every way in 
their power the foreign religion which had been 
introduced from India. Already monasteries had 
sprung up in various parts of the country, and it is 
possible that then, as now, these were occasionally 
hotbeds of treason and sedition. But however that 
may be, several decrees were issued commanding the 



THE TANG DYNASTY 21 

monks to range themselves as Benedicts, and to 
rejoin the ranks of civil life, which in their mistaken 
zeal they had deserted for the cloister. 

But the chief glory of the dynasty was the litera- 
ture which sprung up under the fostering care of the 
rulers. Poets, essayists, and historians poured out from 
their studies volumes which charmed their contem- 
poraries as much as they delight students and scholars 
of the present day. In every library in China will 
now be found " The Complete Poems of the T'ang 
Dynasty," while numberless volumes of the polite 
literature of the period still hold unrivalled sway in 
the opinion of the Literati. In the field of battle 
the nation was as successful as in the arena of 
literature. With skill and success the districts of 
Hamil, Turfan, and the Ouigour country were added 
to the Empire, and thus brought Far Cathay with'n 
the cognisance of Western Asia, and even of the con- 
fines of Europe. The See of Rome, ever ready to 
extend its influence and to gain converts to the faith, 
took advantage of the opportunity thus offered to 
despatch an embassy to the Chinese Court, where to 
his astonishment the Papal envoy found assembled 
envoys from Persia and Nepaul. Already the 
Nestorian Christians had sent missionaries to proclaim 
the truth, as they had received it, and though little is 
said on the subject in the histories, it is plain that 
considerable success attended their efforts. A striking 
testimony to this is found in a monument which 
stands at the present day in the city of Hsian Fu, on 
which is inscribed a record of this first attempt to 
introduce Christianity into China. 



22 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE EMPIRE 

As time went on, however, the domestic affairs of 
the Empire fell into that disorder which always 
accompanies the declining years of dynasties. 
Twenty-three sovereigns of the line of T'ang sat in 
succession on the throne, and the reigns of many of 
these were marked rather by feeble administration 
than by any other characteristic. One exception to 
this criticism was the sovereignty of the Empress Wu 
who held the sceptre from 684 to 710. Having set 
aside the rightful sovereign, she usurped the throne, 
and by her wisdom and energy, secured a brief space 
of peace with honour for her distracted countrymen. 
This dynasty, which began by extending religious 
toleration to all beliefs, in course of time inaugurated 
that persecution of Christians which has been 
intermittently carried on ever since, and even laid 
heavy hands on followers of Mahomet and Buddha. 
It was during these restless days that Tu Fu and 
Li T'aipo wrote those poems on the beauties of nature 
and the pleasures of wine, which have made their 
names immortal — at least, within the frontiers of the 
Middle Kingdom. At length, in 907, the Imperial 
line, with all its glories and all its disgraces, passed 
away, and was followed by a succession of short 
dynasties, which did little more than keep alive the 
idea of Empire, until the rise of the Sung power in 
960. 

At the close of the T'ang dynasty, a tribe appeared 
on the frontiers of China which was destined to 
exercise a vast influence on the fortunes of the 
country. The Tartars, who had constantly raided 
the Northern Provinces, now appeared in force, and so 



THE K ITAN TARTARS 23 

successfully waged war on the Southern Empire that 
they secured for themselves the China of that day 
from the River Yangtsze northwards. These hardy 
warriors were known as K'itan, the word from which 
the mediaeval name of Cathay is derived, and which, 
under the form of K'itai, is still that by which China 
is known to the Russian people. The supremacy of 
these nomads was not, however, of very long dura- 
tion. After a rule of less than two hundred years 
they yielded place to their congenitors, the Kin 
Tartars, the progenitors of the present ruling sove- 
reigns, who in their turn divided with Sung the whole 
Empire. 




II 

THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

But while constant war was being carried on 
between the Kin and Sung dynasties, yet another 
Power was rising on the Mongolian steppes destined 
to crush both under its iron heel. In the valley of 
the Oncn, in the neighbourhood of the Karakorum 
hills, was fostered a Mongol chief, who in the near 
future was to be classed among the greatest rulers the 
world has ever seen. The parentage of Jenghiz Khan 
differed little from that of those about him, but from 
an early age Nature had marked him out as a leader 
of men. While yet young he was chosen as Khan 
of his tribe, and led his followers in a succession 
of campaigns against the neighbouring chieftains. 
Having humbled these rulers to the dust, and having 
swept their vanquished followers into his ranks, he 
braced himself up to more serious warfare. 

The kingdom of Hsia, which consisted of the 
modern provinces of Kansu and Shensi, though not a 
fertile territory was, by comparison with the cold and 
bleak steppes of Mongolia, a land flowing with milk 
?j\d honey. Without much difficulty Jenghiz Khan's 



26 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

hardy warriors subdued this country under them, and, 
aspiring to fresh conquests, invaded the territory ruled 
over by the Kin Dynasty (121 1). This campaign 
was partially successful, and at its conclusion Jenghiz, 
as was his wont, retired to his Ordu on the River 
Onon, to recruit his forces, and to collect his strength 
for a second onslaught. Two years later he again 
took the field, and, overrunning the modern province of 
Chihli, laid waste ninety of its fairest cities, including 
the Kin capital, which stood in the neighbourhood of 
the modern Peking. Leaving an occupying force to 
preserve his newly-acquired rights, Jenghiz turned his 
attention westward, and with marvellous speed and 
thoroughness, gathered within his borders the districts 
of Kashgar, Yarkand, and Khoten. Even such vast 
conquests as these failed to satisfy the lust for empire 
which had taken possession of the Mongol chieftain. 
On one excuse or another, he led his troops of nomad 
horsemen against the kingdom of Khuarezm, and 
having swept over its richest provinces, advanced into 
Georgia and Western Europe. With irresistible force, 
aided no doubt by the terror which, as the '* curse of 
God," he inspired, he captured Moscow and Kiev, the 
Jerusalem of Russia, and did not draw rein until he 
had advanced as far as Cracow and Pesth. After 
having laid waste all these cities so that,, as he 
boasted, he could ride over their sites without meeting 
an obstacle sufficient to make his " horse stumble," he 
returned to Mongolia, and there died in the year 
1227. Meanwhile his generals had not been idle in 
China, but had advanced his conquests to the fertile 
region within the eastern bend of the Yellow River, 



THE FIRST CATHOLIC MISSIONARIES 2/ 

thus securing a rich inheritance to his successor 
Oghotai. 

It was during the reign of this monarch that the 
first CathoHc missionaries carried the Hght of Christian 
civilisation to the dark regions of Mongolia. " It is 
worthy of the grateful remembrance of all Christian 
people," says the missionary Friar Ricold, of Monte 
Croce, as quoted by Colonel Yule ; " that just at the 
time when God had sent forth into the western parts 
of the world the Tartars to slay and to be slain ; He 
also sent into the east His faithful servants Dominic 
and Francis to enlighten, instruct, and build up in 
the Faith." Little or nothing is known of these 
messengers of the gospel, but in the years 1245-47 
John de Piano Carpini presented himself before the 
great Khan, and has left us an account of his observa- 
tions. Though he failed to reach China he saw a 
number of its subjects at the Mongol Court, and 
describes them as " heathen men," but " having a 
written character of their own. They seem," he says, 
" indeed to be kindly and polished folks enough. They 
have no beard, and in character of countenance have 
a considerable resemblance to the Mongols, but are 
not so broad in the face. They have a peculiar 
language. Their betters as craftsmen in every art 
practised by man are not to be found in the whole 
world. Their country is very rich in corn, in wine, 
in gold and silver, in silk, and in every kind of 
produce tending to the support of mankind." 

Some few years later the Franciscan Friar 
Rubruquis followed in Carpini's footsteps, and as a 
result of shrewd observation supplements the very 



28 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

graphic account left us by Carpini. In great Cathay 
or China he recognises the land of the Ceres with 
which we are made familiar by the writings of the 
Latin poets of the Augustan age. " Those 
Cathayans," he adds, " are little fellows, speaking 
much through the nose, and as is general with all 
those Eastern people, their eyes are very narrow. 
They are first-rate artists of every kind, and their 
physicians have a thorough knowledge of the virtues of 
herbs, and an admirable skill in diagnosis by the pulse. 
The common money of Cathay consists of pieces of 
cotton paper about a palm in length and breadth, 
upon which lines are printed resembling the seals of 
Mangu Khan (the third in succession from Jenghiz 
Khan) ; they do their writing with a pencil such as 
painters paint with, and a single character of theirs 
comprehends several letters so as to form a whole 
word." These few lines describe with effective point 
and great accuracy the leading characteristics of 
the patient and laborious inhabitants of China. 

But though these faithful emissaries of Pope Inno- 
cent saw much to interest them in the social manners 
and customs of the Cathayans, they could only carry 
back with them a depressing account of the condition 
of Nestorian Christianity at the capital of the great 
Khan (Mangu). Rubruquis states that when he first 
attempted to explain the object of his mission to 
the Khan, his address was considerably " marred by 
the interpreter becoming incoherent from frequent 
draughts of wine supplied him by Mangu, who 
himself became maudlin before the friar retired, 
from the same cause." The effect of the religious 



KUBLAI KHAN 29 

services was much interfered with also by the indul- 
gence of this infirmity. On high days and festivals 
the sacred ceremonies ended in drunken orgies, and 
on one occasion the Empress, who had a leaning for 
Nestorian Christianity, " was carried home from 
church in a state of intoxication, escorted by priests 
who reeled after her, shouting out their chants and 
hymns." 

Meanwhile Mangu was still waging war against 
the sovereign of the Sung Dynasty, and the enter- 
prise was yet incomplete when he died in 1259, 
leaving the still growing heritage of the Mongols to 
his son, the Great Kublai, a grandson of Jenghiz 
Khan. With indefatigable energy this sovereign took 
in hand the conquest of China, which had been so 
dear to the heart of the great founder of the race, and 
it was while the fate of this venture was still in the 
lap of the gods that the Venetian traveller, Marco 
Polo, presented himself at the Court of the Great 
Khan. Already the father and uncle of Marco had 
made an adventurous journey in pursuit of commerce, 
across Asia to the valley of the Onon, and it was on 
the occasion of their second visit in 1571 that they 
took the youthful Marco with them. " When the two 
brothers and Mark," writes this last named, " had 
arrived at that great city (the Mongol capital), they 
went to the Imperial Palace, and there they found the 
sovereign attended by a great company of barons. 
So they bent the knee before him, and paid their 
respects to him with all possible reverence, prostra- 
ting themselves on the ground. Then the lord bade 
them stand up, and treated them with great honour, 



30 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

showing great pleasure at their coming, and asked 
many questions as to their welfare and how they sped. 
They replied that they had in verity sped very well 
seeing that they found the Khan well and safe. They 
then presented the credentials and letters which they 
had received from the Pope, which pleased him right 
well ; and after that they produced the oil from the 
sepulchre, and at that also he was very glad, for he set 
great store thereby. And next spying Mark, who was 
then a young gallant, he asked who was that in their 
company. ' Sire,' said his father, Messer Nicolo, * 'tis 
my son and your liege man.' ' Welcome is he, too,' 

quoth the Emperor There was great rejoicing 

at the Court because of their arrival ; and they met 
with attention and honour from everybody." 

The pomp and splendour of the Oriental Court 
struck the travellers with amazement. Never before 
had they dreamed of such Imperial splendour. The 
annual feasts and national commemorations were 
celebrated with a magnificence that surpassed their 
wildest imaginations, while the evidences of civilisa- 
tion which they met with on all sides led them to 
make comparisons as unfavourable to Europe, as 
changed circumstances lead us now to make to the 
disadvantage of China. One fact which especially 
attracted their attention was the existence of bank- 
notes at a time when as yet Europe was destined to 
wait four centuries for a like convenient currency. A 
Chinese bank-note of about a century later is now 
exhibited in the King's Library of the British 
Museum, which is noticeable from the fact that the 
paper on which it is printed is almost black. The 



KUBLAIS CAMPAIGNS 3 1 

explanation of this colour is given by Marco Polo : 
" The Emperor," he tells us, " makes them (his sub- 
jects) take the bark of a certain tree, in fact of the 
mulberry tree, the leaves of which are the food of the 
silkworm, — these trees being so numerous that whole 
districts are full of them. What they take is a 
certain fine white bast or skin which lies between the 
wood of the tree and the thick outer bark, and this 
they make into something resembling sheets of paper, 
but black." The Khan himself, he describes as being 
of a good stature, neither tall nor short, and being 
very shapely in all his limbs. If this were so the 
Chinese artists who have left us portraits of the great 
man have signally maligned him. According to them 
he was stout almost to obesity, and far from possess- 
ing the shapely form described by the Venetian, whose 
evidence, however, we should be inclined to accept 
rather than the products of native studios. 

Meanwhile Kublai was actively engaged in the 
campaign against the reigning sovereign of the Sung 
Dynasty, and it is even said that in this enterprise he 
received useful help at the outset from the young 
Marco. It is difficult, however, to reconcile this with 
the dates assigned to Marco's arrival and the opening 
of the campaign ; but however that may be, Kublai's 
first advance was made across the Yellow River, and 
against the city of Hsiangyang, in the province of 
Hupeh. It is remarkable in the history of these wars 
to find how much stouter a resistance the Chinese 
offered to the invading Mongols than the inhabitants 
of Western Asia and Eastern Europe were able to 
present. It was only after a long siege that Hsiang- 



32 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

yang fell Into the hands of the Mongols, and it 
required more than one arduous campaign to subdue 
the cities of Hanyang, Hankow, Wuchang, Soochow, 
and, finally, Hangchow, the Sung capital. With the 
fall of the capital the Sung Dynasty practically came 
to an end, though with fitful efforts the followers of 
the ruling house attempted to stem the tide of inva- 
sion, and by 1276 the whole of China acknowledged 
the sway of Kublai. At this time the Mongol sovereign 
ruled over an empire which was one of the largest of 
which the world's history has knowledge, and which 
claimed as its subjects the countless hordes occupying 
the vast territories which stretch from the Black Sea 
to the shores of the China Ocean, and from Northern 
Mongolia to the frontiers of Annam. 

One of the most striking features of Kublai's 
campaigns was the ease and rapidity with which his 
forces were moved over vast stretches of territory. 
Whether the enemy to be assailed were the people of 
Persia or of Cochin China, his armies straightway 
marched against the foe, and with surprising speed 
gained striking distance. Those whose fortune it has 
been to travel through Western China, and to cross 
the many mountain ranges over which the only roads 
are narrow pathways, fitted rather for goats than for 
human beings, will well understand how formidable 
must, for example, have been the undertaking of 
moving an army from Peking to the frontiers of 
Burma. To the Mongols, however, it was enough 
to know that the work had to be done, and without 
loss of time they overcame the difficulties of trans- 
port, and succeeded in placing an army in the field 



THE BURMESE CAMPAIGN 33 

on the plains of Yungchang. To Kublai's followers, 
accustomed to the warfare of northern latitudes, the 
Burmese arms and equipments presented new and 
alarming characteristics. For the first time in their 
experiences they were called upon to face troops of 
elephants — animals which they could never have seen 
before. Nothing daunted, the General in command 
dismounted his men, who fired such a storm of arrows 
into the huge monsters, that they turned and rushed 
through the Burmese ranks, causing disorder and 
panic among their masters. Taking advantage of the 
confusion thus caused, the Mongols charged home 
into the forces of the enemy, and gained a decisive 
victory. Alarmed at the swarming numbers and over- 
mastering power of the invaders, the King submitted 
himself to Kublai, and was allowed to return to his 
capital on the condition that he and his successors 
should pay a regular tribute to the Court of China. 
Up to the time of our taking possession of Burma 
this tribute was regularly paid ; and unfortunately 
even after we were in possession of Mandalay one or 
two tribute-bearing missions were allowed to carry 
homage to Peking. 

But while in the Burmese and other land campaigns 
Kublai was uniformly successful, he was, in his naval 
warfare, eminently unfortunate. In 1266 he sent two 
envoys in the direction of Japan, who, however, re- 
turned without having ventured to cross the inter- 
vening sea from the coast of Korea. The object of 
this mission was doubtless to put an end to the 
Japanese piratical raids which had long been occasion- 
ing panic and disorder on the coasts of China and 

4 



34 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

Korea ; but, finally, having failed to arrive at a 
peaceful solution of the difficulty, Kublai despatched 
a fleet against the Japanese which suffered a fate 
similar to that which overtook the Chinese ships at 
the Yalu during the late war. A number of the 
vessels were captured, a number were destroyed, and 
only a remnant returned to carry back the news of 
the disaster. Some years later Kublai fitted out 
another fleet carrying 100,000 warriors in the hope of 
avenging the late disgrace, but no better fortune 
attended this second venture, and it is said that almost 
the whole fleet perished. Other expeditions against 
the islands in the China seas proved equally unsuc- 
cessful, and Kublai was compelled to recognise the 
fact that while invincible on land, his hardy warriors 
were no match afloat for the seafaring populations of 
the islands. It is not in man to command success, 
and Kublai the victor in so many hard fought fields 
could well afford to submit to these foreign rebuffs on 
a strange element. In matters of religion Kublai 
showed the same toleration which had been conspicuous 
in his predecessors ; with equal favour, or perhaps one 
may say, indifference, he showed an impartially 
friendly disposition towards Christianity, Buddhism, 
and Mohammedanism. He listened to the teachings 
of Christian fathers with the same attention that he 
gave to Buddhist priests and Mohammedan Mullahs ; 
if ever he showed special favour to any one form of 
faith it may safely be assumed that it was with the 
object of hunting the trail of policy by the concession. 
Thus when wishing to secure supremacy over the wild 
and little known regions of Tibet, he affected a strong 



KUBLAfs TOLERANCE 35 

leaning towards Buddhism, and gained such an ascen- 
dancy by so doing that on a vacancy occurring in the 
Pontifical Priesthood he was invited to appoint a 
Grand Lama to superintend the destinies of the 
country. Having thus secured the loyalty of the 
Chief of the State he became virtually its ruler, and 
added a new but profitless province to his already 
unwieldy Empire. 

But his toleration extended beyond religions, and 
embraced foreigners of all nations and degrees ; the 
favour with which he regarded young Marco Polo on 
his first arrival at the Mongol capital was consis- 
tently extended to him during the whole of his 
seventeen years' residence in China. Recognising 
his zeal and ability he appointed him to office, and 
gave him, among other employments, a roving com- 
mission to go through the provinces of Shansi, 
Shensi, Szech'uan, and Yunnan, and to report on 
the condition of the districts through which he 
passed. So well did the Venetian acquit himself 
on this and other occasions that he was finally 
appointed Governor of the city of Yangchow. There 
he exercised rule for three years, and might have 
remained indefinitely had not a wish to return to his 
native land possessed him with overpowering desire. 
His father and uncle, who were still in the country, 
were also anxious to return to Venice, but to their 
repeated requests for leave of absence Kublai had 
invariably returned a negative, and it was by the 
merest chance that they ultimately succeeded in 
getting away from the country of their adoption. 
It happened that Arghun Khan of Persia, a great, 



36 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

nephew of Kublai, who had been left a widower, 
desired to wed, as his second venture, a lady of the 
Mongol tribe, of which his first wife had been a 
member. Kublai sanctioned the arrangement, and 
made choice of a young lady whom he considered to 
be a fit and proper person to fill the place of her 
deceased relative. So far matters went smoothly, 
but when the question came of her journey to Persia, 
which was to be made by sea, Kublai found it more 
difficult to provide a fitting escort than it had been 
to find the lady. The Mongol officials, unaccus- 
tomed to the sea, shrank from the undertaking, and 
as a dernier ressort, it was proposed and agreed to, 
that Marco with his father and uncle should have 
charge of the would-be bride. In 1292 they started 
on their adventurous voyage, in the course of which 
they met with not a few perils. However, at length 
they reached Persia in safety, and Marco tells us that 
the adieux on the part of the lady were more sym- 
pathetic than probably her future husband would 
have cared to witness. The lady, we are told, burst 
into tears, and bade her escort farewell with many 
lamentations. So long had been the voyage that it 
was not until 1295 that the Governor of Yangchow, 
with his father and uncle, appeared once more on the 
Rialto. 

It is beyond dispute that China enjoyed an unusual 
share of prosperity during the reign of Kublai. With 
the same wisdom that he showed in most concerns, he 
exhibited towards the people marked consideration 
and justice. He adopted their institutions and looked 
favourably on their prejudices and leanings ; he was 



DEATH OF KUBLAt 37 

a patron of their national literature ; and used every 
effort to secure justice in the administration of the 
laws. But he was a foreigner, and his dynasty had 
never taken that hold on the country which might 
make people forget that he was not a Chinaman. 
Two years after Marco Polo had left the Great Khan 
was gathered to his fathers, and was carried to his 
tomb without any expression of regret on the part 
of the people over whom he had reigned for five and 
thirty years. His grandson Timur succeeded him 
on the throne, but the ability which had enabled 
Kublai to raise the Empire to the great height at 
which he had left it was wanting in his successor. 
Timur died in 1307, and after him followed in rapid 
succession seven sovereigns, of whom little can be 
said that is of good report, except possibly of the 
second, Jen Tsung, who was an ardent follower of 
Confucius, and who adopted the principle of distri- 
buting offices more equally between Mongols and 
Chinese than had hitherto been the case. 

When Kublai Khan rose to supreme power, the 
Mongols, who had no writing of their own, were 
dependent on their more cultured neighbours for the 
means of corresponding on paper. An acquaintance 
with the cultured and literary people of China had 
taught the great conqueror the necessity of remedying 
this defect, and with the object of doing so, he 
appointed a scholar of the name of Bashpa to devise 
an alphabet which should give expression to the 
thoughts of native writers in a national script 
Bashpa executed his task, and Kublai issued an 
edict ordering that for the future all official docu- 



38 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

ments should be written in the characters so invented. 
No sooner, however, had the Mongols entered China, 
than the new alphabet was discarded. As has been 
said, " China is a sea that salts all the waters which 
flow into it," and the Mongols having left their 
dreary steppes, and their equally dreary scraps of 
literature, became ardent admirers of the Chinese 
scholarship. Under the influence of this new life 
they forgot the results of Bashpa's ingenuity, and 
adopted the learning and writing of their conquered 
enemies. One branch of Chinese literature may 
almost be said to have been the creation of the 
Mongols ; before their time puppet shows and 
dramatic performances had been among the popular 
amusements of the Chinese people. The patronage 
which was extended to these scenic efforts by the 
Mongols encouraged the production of more regular 
plays, and the profession of playwright became in 
consequence a popular one with such authors as had 
more taste for holding the mirror up to Nature than 
for discussing the sterner thoughts of the philo- 
sophers. The dramas which were produced during 
the Mongol period have never been surpassed in 
China, and the "Plays of the Yuan Dynasty" are still 
regarded as standard works in this department of 
literature. 

During the last reigns of the Yuan Dynasty the 
usual precursors of revolution became prominent. 
Rebellions and riots broke out on all sides, and 
during the reign of Shunti, the last of the Mongols, 
the disorders came to a head. The dynasty had 
never been popular, and when its sovereigns ceased 



A REBELLIOUS MONK 39 

to be powerful, the desire for the return to the throne 
of a Chinese Hne became intensified among the 
people. At the head of one of the risings in the 
south was one who was destined to wear the robes 
of sovereignty. Chu was essentially a man of the 
people, and his family having fallen on evil times, he 
was left on the death of his parents penniless and 
alone. To men in such a condition the cloister often 
offers a shelter from the storm. At all events this 
was Chu's anticipation when he shaved his head and 
took the vows of a Buddhist monk. But circum- 
stances were too strong for the recluse, and the 
military spirit that was born in him having been 
awakened by a rebellion which broke out in the 
neighbourhood of his monastery, he incontinently 
cast aside his cowl and took the sword. A command- 
ing presence, a strong will, and considerable ability, 
soon forced him to the head of the movement, and 
with such skilful tactics did he manoeuvre his men on 
the battlefield that he was uniformly successful in 
his engagements with the enemy. With scarcely a 
check he marched on Nanking, and having captured 
that most important city after a short siege, he, like 
the T'aip'ing Wang of forty years ago, constituted 
it his capital. From this poiiit d'appuis he succeeded 
in driving the Mongols out of the Province of 
Kiangsi. 

The central provinces were not the only parts of 
the Empire where the fortunes of war declared 
against the Mongols at this time. In Korea, and in 
the western parts of the Empire, the rebellious forces 
claimed to have gained victories, and it was in the 



40 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

midst of these clouds of disasters that Shunti was 
gathered to his fathers (1370). Meanwhile Chu 
despatched three armies for the conquest of the still 
unsubdued districts. Two were commissioned to 
subjugate the southern provinces of Fuhkien, Kwang- 
tung, and Kwangsi, while the third, consisting, it is 
said, of two hundred and fifty thousand men, was 
ordered to overrun the northern portion of the 
country. By this time the leaven of rebellion had 
spread far and wide, and Chu's troops found little 
difficulty in executing the commissions entrusted to 
them. With scarcely any opposition Peking fell 
before the rebel forces, and as a fitting climax to that 
victory, Chu, at the bidding of his vast hosts, was 
induced to accept the Imperial purple. He was well 
aware, however, that the most difficult part of his 
task still lay before him. At the head of an enthu- 
siastic army, and in face of a disheartened foe, it 
had been comparatively easy for him to overthrow the 
Mongol power. He now had to justify the choice of 
the people in placing him on the throne, and in this 
trying position he displayed as far-seeing a judgment 
as that which had already secured him temporary 
success. He recognised the importance of fostering 
that learning of which the nation was justly proud, 
and one of his first public acts was directed towards 
re-establishing throughout the country the schools 
which had fallen into decay during the troublous 
time which had marked the decadence of the House 
of Jenghiz Khan. 

During the halcyon period of the T'ang Dynasty 
an Imperial College, known as the Hanlin or "Forest 



THE HANLIN COLLEGE 4I 

of Pencils," had been established under Imperial 
patronage. Admittance to this palace of learning 
had always been regarded as the highest literary 
honour which could be obtained by the most erudite 
scholars. During the many dynastic changes which 
had taken place since its foundation its existence had 
been chequered by not a few periods of misfortune, 
and by none greater than that which had lately over- 
taken it. Hungwu — for such was the Imperial title 
adopted by Chu — determined to rehabilitate the insti- 
tution. He rebuilt its shattered walls, refurnished its 
empty rooms, and showed his personal interest in the 
work by personally visiting the building, and super- 
intending the arrangements for its revival. It was 
fit and proper that the main building should be at 
Peking, but Hungwu could never forget that Nan- 
king had been the capital of his choice, and as 
evidence of this sentiment he built and endowed a 
sister institution at that city. Since the advent of 
power of the present Manchu Dynasty this last 
foundation has ceased to exist, though the college at 
Peking still maintains its high reputation. Like 
everything else, however, in the northern capital, 
with the exception perhaps of parts of the Imperial 
palace and of the foreign legations, the Hanlin 
College is fast hastening to decay. Its halls are 
deserted and its archives and library are covered 
thick with dust. It may sound paradoxical to say 
that a building in such a deplorable condition can 
represent an institution to which all men look up. 
But so it is. The highest literary honour that it is 
in the power of his Emperor to confer is admittance 



42 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

to the ranks of the chosen few who boast themselves 
as being Hanhn scholars, though it is probable that 
few of those who now bear that title have ever passed 
through the creaking gates of the Hanlin College. 

Another great work undertaken by Hungwu was 
the codification of the laws of the Empire. During 
the Mongol Dynasty much laxity had been observed 
in the administration of justice. The Mongol rulers 
were men of action, and thought more of the weapons 
of their army than of the forms of the legal procedure. 
But an immense benefit was conferred on the nation 
at large by this peaceful achievement of Hungwu. 
History further tells us that, with the true instincts 
of a law-giver, he recognised that something more 
than forms, however excellent, was needed, and 
devoted much time and energy to promoting the 
practical administration of justice and equity in the 
local courts. There was unquestionably room for 
such an effort, but to cleanse so foul an Augean 
stable as the Chinese law courts was more than one 
man, however able and however well intentioned, 
could possibly accomplish, and unfortunately for the 
nation the officials ploughed up his good seed as soon 
as it was sown. More beneficial legislation in this 
direction would, however, undoubtedly have been 
effected had it not been that the Mongols, taking 
heart of grace after their defeat, took the field once 
again against their conqueror. Even in the home 
provinces of Shansi and Shensi they gained such 
victories over the Ming troops as put a considerable 
strain on Hungwu's resources, while in the pro- 
montory of Liaotung and the provinces of Szech'uan 



THE CLOSE OF HUNGWU'S REIGN 43 

and Yunnan they completely put the enemy to rout. 
To meet this emergency Hungwu despatched one 
army against Chungk'ing, and another against Ch'engtu 
in Szech'uan, and having pacified those districts 
marched across the border into Yunnan ; and 
ultimately recovered that province from the Mongol 
yoke. In the midst of these victories, at a ripe age 
and full of honours, Hungwu became a guest on high 
(1399), leaving a rich inheritance to his successor. It 
is noteworthy that recently the thoughts of a large 
section of the Chinese people have been led back to 
this period. It is by a comparison between the 
present state of the Empire, and the condition of 
things which existed under the first sovereign of the 
Ming Dynasty, that the leaders of the Kolaohwei have 
been able to enlist so many recruits to their banners. 
Hung, the first syllable of the sovereign's name, has 
now been taken as the second title of this very revolu- 
tionary Society. Time will show what is the extent 
of the disaffection which is unquestionably now 
brewing, and how far the existence of foreigners 
in the country will serve as a check to any serious 
disturbance of the political equilibrium. Already 
within modern times the government has once at 
least been saved from its own people by foreign 
intervention, and it is possible that a like support 
may again be required to bolster up the central 
authority in times of future trouble. 

Some years before Hungwu's death, his eldest son 
having already succumbed to disease, he, by his last 
testament devised his Empire and Throne to his grand- 
son, who afterwards adopted the title of Chienwen. In 



44 '^HE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

Eastern countries where primogeniture is not the 
invariable rule, some uncertainty as to the succes- 
sion generally follows an Imperial demise. In this 
case each of the younger sons considered that he had 
a better claim to the Throne than his nephew, and to 
avoid the outburst of any unseemly violence between 
the disputants Hungwu before his death sent the 
malcontents to their provincial posts, keeping his 
grandson about his person at Court. The difficulty 
of the position was eventually accentuated by the 
obligation which Chienwen felt to be incumbent upon 
him of inviting his uncles to take part in the Imperial 
obsequies. With the exception of one, the Prince of 
Yen, they all with one consent declined to be present. 
Nor did the acceptance of the invitation by this 
prince by any means imply a feeling of loyalty 
towards his nephew. On the contrar}^, on leaving 
the Imperial presence he at once retired to Nanking 
to organise his forces of opposition. With as little 
loss of time as possible he took the field, and being a 
man of great energy, determination, and courage, he 
gained a series of victories over his kinsman, which 
were chequered only by some trifling defeats. At 
length, in 1402, his troops had so completely gained 
the upper hand that Chienwen determined to give up 
the struggle and to abdicate. So unusual a step led 
to the report that he had committed suicide, but 
possibly with a recollection of his grandfather's 
religious propensities he, instead, shaved his head 
and sought sanctuary in a monastery in Yunnan. 
For forty years he remained incognito in the 
cloister, but at the end of that time, perhaps weary of 



YUNCLO'S ADMINISTRATION 45 

the monotony of his existence, he launched out into 
poetry, and pubHshed a volume describing his former 
trials and difficulties with such minute details that 
the authorship stood confessed. The fact of his being 
an Emperor's son, or possibly the fear that he might 
instigate a rebellion, induced the ruling sovereign to 
order him to Peking, where he was kept a state 
prisoner within the precincts of the palace until death 
put an end to his troublous existence. Meanwhile 
Yen was urged by his followers to usurp the throne. 
Nothing loth he accepted the crown, and for two 
and twenty years reigned with vigour over the 
Empire. During the Mongol period Peking had 
been the official capital, and Yunglo, as Yen had 
styled himself, determined so far to break the 
traditions belonging to his house as once again 
to transfer the seat of Government from Nanking 
to Peking. Further, for his own peace, and for the 
satisfaction of his followers also, he considered it wise 
that he should be handed down to posterity as the 
direct heir of Hungwu, and he therefore issued an 
edict commanding that Chienwen's reign should be 
obliterated from the annals, and that the four years 
during which he had held the Imperial sceptre should 
be added to the reign of Hungwu. 

Under his able administration the country enjoyed 
comparative peace, and he had time to turn his 
attention from the " Eighteen Provinces " to the 
difficulties which were disturbing the political affairs 
of Tonquin. Compared with his predecessors' reigns 
his rule was in the happy position of having no 
history within the frontiers of the Empire. Beyond 



46 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

the northern marches, however, war with the Tartars 
was chronic, and though his generals gained repeated 
victories over their restless adversaries, the system of 
warfare which these practised made it impossible for 
the Chinese to consolidate their triumphs. It is 
always difficult to destroy a guerilla force which has 
a boundless territory to which to retire. That he 
inflicted serious losses on them is well established ; 
and it was when on one of his expeditions against 
these nomad marauders that his fatal illness overtook 
him in 1425. Yunglo was more than a mere soldier. 
He showed a wide and intelligent interest in the 
literature of his country, and caused to be executed 
one literary task which alone should make his name 
famous. He appointed a commission of the leading 
scholars of the time to compile an exhaustive ency- 
clopaedia on all subjects commemorated in Chinese 
literature. After bestowing the labour of many 
years on this gigantic compilation, the editors pre- 
sented (1407) their Imperial Master with a work 
consisting of no fewer than 22,877 books, besides the 
table of contents, which occupied sixty volumes. 

To Yunglo succeeded several sovereigns, the 
history of whose reigns presents a dismal picture of 
incompetence and anarchy. The historians, indeed, 
delight to tell us that envoys from Central Asia, 
India, and Malacca, came to pay homage at the 
court of these Sons of Heaven. But these glimpses 
of honour are set off in a background of open disorder 
and successful rebellion. In 1428 Tonquin threw off 
the Chinese yoke and the Tartars raided, almost 
unchecked, over the northern frontier of the Empire. 



THE EMPEROR A PRISONER 4^ 

At one great battle fought against these Mongol 
horsemen a hundred thousand Chinese are said to 
have been killed, and the victory was further empha- 
sised by the capture of the Emperor Chengt'ung 
himself. It is evidence of the abject condition to 
which the Empire was brought at this time, that though 
the Tartar chieftain offered to release his Imperial 
prisoner on the payment of a hundred taels of gold, two 
hundred taels of silver, and two hundred pieces of silk, 
the Chinese were unable to provide the ransom. Eight 
years Chengt'ung remained in captivity, and during 
this enforced absence from Peking his throne was 
vicariously occupied by his next brother. In 1465 
Chengt'ung paid the great debt of nature, and made 
his death humanely memorable by an order that the 
barbarous Mongol practice of immolating slaves at 
the tombs of Sovereigns — a practice which had been 
adopted by the earlier Ming rulers — should not be 
followed in his case. A still more memorable record 
of his reign is found in the large geographical work 
on the Empire, entitled Ta Ming yi fung chik, or " A 
Complete Geographical Record of the Empire under 
the great Ming Dynasty." The example thus set has 
fortunately been followed by the rulers of the present 
line of sovereigns, under whose auspices the Ta 
Ch'ing yi fung chih in five hundred books, which de- 
scribes in minute detail the geographical and political 
condition of the country, has been issued from the Press. 
It was during the reign of Chengt'ung's successor 
Ch'enghwa, that the canal from Peking to the Peiho 
was made. This was the only public work for which 
there was either time or inclination in the midst of 



48 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

the brigandage and seditious risings which disturbed 
the Empire, more especially in the northern and 
western provinces, with such constant persistency that 
they may almost be said to have been endemic. 

During the reign of Chengte (1506-22) occurred 
an event which led up, though at a long interval, to 
the Treaties which now govern the relations of China 
with the outer world. In 1 5 1 1 the Portuguese, Raphael 
Perestralo, arrived off the southern coast of China, 
and six years later Don Fernao Peres D'Andrade 
presented himself at Canton in command of a small 
squadron. The object of these pioneers was the 
extension of commerce, and D'Andrade having been 
well received by the authorities at Canton, proceeded 
to Peking, where he remained some years, acting the 
part of an amateur ambassador. For some time his 
relations with the central authorities were amicable, 
but the outrageous action of his compatriots in other 
parts of the Empire unhappily brought his mission to 
an abrupt and unfortunate close. By order of the 
Emperor he was arrested and imprisoned, and after 
six years of confinement was summarily beheaded by 
order of the succeeding ruler, Chiaching. Such a 
reprisal was undoubtedly a high-handed measure, but 
the Portuguese traders on the coast, notably at Ningpo 
and Foochow, had rapidly filled up a large cup of 
iniquity. They had been guilty of every form of 
outrage, and at Ningpo had proceeded to such 
excesses that on the occasion of a difference with the 
people of a neighbouring village they had fallen upon 
and massacred their opponents. When estimating 
the conduct of an Oriental State in such circum- 



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50 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

stances, it is only fair that the opposite side of the 
shield should be seen, and it cannot be denied that 
the history of the early Portuguese settlements in 
China is stained by every form of iniquity. 

In the Chinese histories no mention is made of 
D'Andrade's residence in Peking, and the first Portu- 
guese visit on the coast is put down to the year 1535. 
At this time in the neighbourhood of Foochow a 
general massacre of the Portuguese took place in 
revenge for certain nefarious acts, and thirty only out 
of several hundred escaped to tell the tale to their 
countrymen in the neighbourhood of Canton. After 
numerous negotiations and much filibustering, the 
Canton officials allowed the Portuguese to settle on the 
peninsula of Macao in exchange for an annual rental. 
To say that the lives of these men were precarious 
would certainly not be over-stating the case. They were 
constantly engaged in conflicts with the forces of the 
Chinese Government, as well as with the pirates who 
ravaged the coasts, but, though they carried their 
lives in their hands, so lucrative was the trade in 
which they were engaged that as many as five or six 
hundred Portuguese were commonly to be found 
within the precincts of the new settlement. 

It need not be a matter of surprise that the action 
of these pioneers of commerce rendered the Chinese 
disinclined to receive within their frontiers any for- 
eigner whom they could conveniently keep out, and 
when the missionary Xavier, burning with a desire to 
carry a knowledge of Christianity to the people, asked 
for leave to be allowed to deliver this message of 
goodwill to all men, he was refused permission to land. 



RICCI'S RELIGIOUS SUCCESSES 5 1 

Unwilling to give up the enterprise he took up his 
residence on the island of Sanshan, within sight of 
the mainland, and there died in 1552 without having 
accomplished the yearning desire of his heart. The 
same inhospitality was offered to Michel Roger, the 
first of the Jesuit missionaries who attempted to gain 
a footing in the Middle Kingdom. The great Ricci 
who arrived at Macao in 1582 was more successful. 
He was a man with wide sympathies, great learning, 
and much Christian charity. He began his work in 
China by studying the language, together with the 
scientific and religious beliefs of the people, and he 
thought that he saw in the native ideas on the subject 
of the Supreme Being and the whole duty of man, a 
likeness, though deformed by superstition, but still a 
likeness, to the truths set forth in the gospel. He 
seized on all those passages in the Confucian literature 
which agree with the utterances of the inspired 
writers, and following the example of Saint Paul at 
Athens, he told his hearers that the God whom they 
ignorantly worshipped was the God whom he was 
sent to preach to them. The open-mindedness which 
thus characterised his sentiments gained for him 
consideration and respect among all classes alike, 
from the ignorant coolies to the educated mandarins. 
With such a reputation he was received with favour 
at Peking — a favour which was not diminished by his 
very practical knowledge of mechanics, which enabled 
him even to set to rights the Emperor's clocks and 
watches which, under the unwonted treatment to 
which they were subjected by the palace officials, had 
gone hopelessly wrong. Intent on interesting and at 



52 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

the same time instructing the mandarins, he utilised 
his knowledge of the language to translate the first 
six books of Euclid into Chinese. At a later period 
he published in Chinese a geometrical treatise on the 
theory of astronomical measurement ; and not to 
leave the religious feelings of the people untouched, 
he brought out a work on the character and attributes 
of God. The scholarly style of these works com- 
mended them even to the punctilious taste of the 
Literati, and their author enjoyed during his residence 
in Peking the respect and friendship of the Court and 
of the highest officials of the Empire. It is note- 
worthy that a movement is now on foot for inaugu- 
rating a system similar to that of Ricci. Works of 
scientific and general interest are being translated 
into Chinese, and the attempt is thus being made to 
reach those members of the upper classes who have 
of late been so bitterly opposed to European inter- 
course. Ricci died in i6io, deeply regretted by all 
with whom he had been brought into contact. 

The reign of Chiaching (1522-67), which had been 
disturbed from its beginning by domestic outbreaks, 
was destined before its close to be imperilled by the 
same enemy which has of late humbled Chinese 
pride to the dust. It will be remembered that 
Kublai Khan made several expeditions against 
Japan, and though uniformly unsuccessful these 
onslaughts none the less left a rankling feeling of 
ill-will in the minds of the Japanese. As the 
Mongol power declined the Japanese sought re- 
venge for the injuries inflicted on them, by piratical 
raids on the coast. Mr. Boulger, in his " History of 



A JAPANESE INVASION 53 

China," quotes a passage from a Chinese historian, 
who describes the Japanese of this period as being 
" intrepid, inured to fatigue, despising Hfe, and know- 
ing well how to face death ; although inferior in 
number, a hundred of them would blush to flee 
before a thousand foreigners, and, if they did, they 
would not dare to return to their country. Senti- 
ments such as these, which are instilled into them 
from their earliest childhood, render them terrible in 
battle." This description is as true to-day as it was 
then, and their prowess appeared as conspicuously 
off the coasts of Fuhkien and Chehkiang in the six- 
teenth century as it did at the battles of Pingyang 
and Yalu. These lawless attacks on the Chinese 
coast were diversified with intervals of quiet, during 
which Japanese merchants reaped a rich harvest from 
the Chinese traders. But in 1552 a more serious 
campaign was undertaken, and a landing having 
been effected on the coast of Chehkiang, the invaders 
established themselves in a fortified post, and for 
a time defended their position against all comers. 
Some years later they even advanced and laid siege 
to Nanking, and though this attempt at conquest 
failed, the repeated onslaughts of the invaders para- 
lysed the Imperial power, and kept the Eastern 
Provinces in a chronic state of disorder. In every 
naval engagement the Japanese were successful, and 
on land, though vastly outnumbered, they were never 
hopelessly defeated. 

From time immemorial the pursuit of the philo- 
sopher's stone and of the elixir of life has been a 
favourite occupation with Chinese alchemists, and 



54 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

though refuted over and over again by the cold hand 
of death, it has never lost a certain fascination for the 
ignorant seekers after the unknown. It is strange to 
find that Chiaching, whose occupation of the throne 
had been one long troublous struggle, should have 
desired to perpetuate an existence which can have 
afforded him so very little pleasure. But so it was, 
and with ceaseless diligence he sought to snatch from 
the professors of Taoism the secret which was to make 
him immortal. As the approach of death proved 
indisputably the folly of his ways, he owned his error, 
and on his death-bed wrote a confession in these 
words : — " Forty-five years have I occupied the 
throne, and there have been few reigns as long. 
My duty was to revere heaven, and to take care of 
my people ; yet, actuated by the desire to find some 
solace for the evils from which I have continually 
suffered, I allowed myself to be deceived by impostors, 
who promised me the secret of immortality. This 
delusion has led me to set a bad example to both 
my magnates and my people. I desire to repair the 
evil by this edict, which is to be published through- 
out the Empire after my death." In 1566 he passed 
into the land of shades, and his son Lungch'ing 
reigned in his stead. 

The only event of importance which occurred in 
this reign was the submission of the turbulent 
Mongol leader Yenta, who had long defied the 
Chinese power. Yenta was now an old man, and 
wishing to end his days in peace he entered into 
negotiation with Lungch'ing, who, after the manner 
of Eastern sovereigns when dealing with submissive 



AN EMPRESS REGENT 55 

rebels, granted him the title of Prince, and so set at 
rest a feud which had been of time-honoured exist- 
ence. But though Lungch'ing's reign had ended in 
peace and quiet, the general trend of the nation's 
history was downwards, and it was unfortunate that 
at this time, when a strong hand was needed at the 
helm, a child should have succeeded to the throne. 
As is usual in such cases the young Emperor's 
mother was proclaimed Regent, and though for a 
time the legacy of peace which had descended to 
the Empire remained intact, it was not long before 
disturbances again broke out. In Szech'uan, and on 
the north-west frontier rebellions of considerable 
dimensions afflicted the Empire. The important 
town of Ninghsia fell into the hands of the Tartars, 
led by the chieftain Popai, who added ingratitude to 
the crime of rebellion by leading his forces against 
the Chinese army in which he had at one time held 
high rank. Fortunately the Imperialists were able 
to recover the city, and at the same time to crush the 
rebellion. 

But while thus successful in the north-west, the 
same foe appeared on the eastern coast who had 
lately proved to be a formidable antagonist to the 
Chinese. Many years of peace and of successful 
raiding on the Chinese mainland had introduced an 
era of prosperity into Japan, and the people having 
waxed fat began to kick. They had long been 
associated with Korean politics and rivalries, and 
seizing on the present opportunity (1592) when 
Korea, as has not been uncommonly the case in her 
history, was distracted by internal feuds, they landed 



56 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

a force at the port of Fusan under the command 
of the celebrated general and subsequent Shogun, 
Hideyoshi. Without meeting with much opposition 
Hideyoshi advanced across the peninsula and made 
himself master of the capital, Seoul. Until the 
recent war the Chinese have always acted as the 
suzerain power in Korea, and in this emergency the 
King, as in duty and interest bound, appealed to the 
Chinese Emperor for assistance. The appeal was 
at once acknowledged, and a large Chinese force 
marched into Korea by way of the Yalu district. 
In anticipation of this movement the Japanese 
advanced northwards to meet the attack, and, as in 
1894, took up their position in Pingyang, where they 
were received without opposition by the inhabitants. 
The Chinese attack was delivered in force, but 
Hideyoshi commanded and disposed his men so 
ably that they had little difficulty in beating off 
their assailants. 

The efforts which had been made for the campaign 
by both nations had, however, so far weakened their 
resources that neither was much inclined to continue 
the struggle at once. The Chinese, therefore, waited 
for reinforcements, and the Japanese slowly retired 
on their base at Fusan. Desultory engagements 
ensued, and the Chinese gained one decided victory 
near Pingyang, where they succeeded in burning a 
depot of warlike stores on which Hideyoshi had 
depended for the army. Negotiations for peace 
followed, and it is noticeable that the Chinese 
adopted precisely the same tactics as those which 
they practised in 1895. They sent ambassadors of 



SPAIN AND THE PHILIPPINES 5/ 

inferior rank to represent the Emperor, and by this 
course so outraged the feeHngs of Hideyoshi, who in 
the meantime had become Shogun, that he prepared 
a fresh expedition for the renewed conquest of the 
country. Before, however, anything could be effected, 
the news reached Fusan of his death. This catas- 
trophe put an end to the war, and peace was once 
more restored between the two countries. Of the 
spoils carried off by the Chinese we hear nothing, 
but the Japanese returned to their islands laden with 
trophies, among which were the ears of ten thousand 
Koreans who had been butchered in the frays. 

It was during this reign that the Spaniards reached 
the Philippine islands, where they found a congenial 
climate and a fertile soil. They, however, were not 
the only people who recognised these advantages. 
They had no sooner settled themselves on the islands 
than Chinese emigrants followed their example, and 
in the quiet, persistent way common to the race, 
poured into the country. At first the Spaniards were 
well pleased to have such willing and handy crafts- 
men, but as the number of them increased by leaps 
and bounds they soon began to fear for their 
dominion. Threats and persuasions were freely 
used to induce the intruders to return to their native 
land, and these proving unavailing an order was 
given for the massacre of the strangers. Twenty 
thousand Chinamen are said to have been slaugh- 
tered at this time, and had these been subjects of 
any other state than China a war would have been 
inevitable. But until recent years, when international 
law has been made a subject of study at Peking, the 



58 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

Chinese Government has troubled itself very little, 
if at all, about the welfare of its subjects in foreign 
lands. In this case, however, a more immediately 
direct reason caused the Emperor Wanli to overlook 
the outrage. Disturbances had broken out within 
the Empire which, to hold in check, required the 
services of every available man at his command. 
To subdue these completely was plainly beyond his 
power, and to the day of his death, in 1620, wars and 
rumours of wars were endemic in the country. 

Meanwhile, under the skilful guidance of Ricci, 
Christianity had made considerable progress, even 
amid the disorders which had disturbed the reign of 
Wanli. Hsu, one of the Literati, and a man of high 
scholarly attainments and standing, having been 
converted by Ricci's influence, threw himself heart 
and soul into the missionary work. It was mainly 
due to the help of this man that Ricci was able to 
publish the scholarly treatises which have made his 
name immortal in connection with Chinese Missions, 
and Hsli's granddaughter, baptized under the name 
of Candida, ably seconded his influence with money 
and energy. Thirty churches are said to have been 
built by her means, besides ninety buildings for the 
use of the missionaries. Unfortunately for the peace 
of the Empire, Wanli left no son by his Empress to 
succeed him, and at his death he was compelled, 
therefore, to nominate as his heir the eldest son of 
one of his concubines. A younger brother of this 
fortunate youth, being a favourite with his father, had 
been led to expect that in default of a son by the 
Empress, he would have been chosen as successor to 



A REBELLIOUS SON 



59 



the Purple. In his anger at what he considered to be 
his supersession, he raised the standard of revolt, and 
embittered the last few months of his father's life by 
creating a conflict within his own household. Three 




Emperors in succession to Wanli completed the list 
of Ming rulers, and in 1644 the first Sovereign of the 
present Ta Ch'ing Dynasty ascended the throne. 

it cannot be said that science and art 



Though 



60 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

flourished under the Ming rulers, yet the artistic taste, 
at least, of the people was not entirely neglected. 
Numerous artists painted landscapes, flowers, and 
birds, with all the skill that had guided the pencils of 
the artists of the T'ang and Sung Dynasties, and to 
them the Japanese owe and acknowledge a deep debt 
of gratitude for the examples which they set to the 
contemporary painters of Miako and Osaka. The 
works of no artists are more admired in Japan than 
those of Sesshiu and Kano, both of whom drew their 
inspirations direct from China during this period. 
The landscapes of Ma Yuan, and the flowers and 
birds of Ting Ylich'uan are artistic creations which 
must at all times and in all places command admira- 
tion, and these are but two of a host of painters who 
delighted and still delight all connoisseurs of art. 
The wood-engraving of this period is famous for 
beauty of design and skilful treatment, and is eagerly 
sought after for the adornment of houses by those to 
whom the god of wealth has been propitious. 

In several important points scientific teaching 
improved considerably during the same period owing 
to the arrival of Western missionaries in the country. 
Ricci, as we have seen, instructed the Literati in 
geometrical and astronomical knowledge, which 
happily was not allowed to perish with him. In 
1628 John Adam Schall arrived in China, and pro- 
ceeded to Peking, where, under Imperial patronage, 
he was appointed Astronomer-Royal, and was 
deputed to rearrange the Imperial Calendar. Under 
the three last Emperors of the Ming Dynasty, and 
the two first of the present dynasty, Schall was 



k'anghsi and the missionaries 6 1 

treated with all the respect and honour to which he 
was entitled. But at the beginning of the reign of 
K'anghsi he fell on evil days. Jealousy was aroused 
against him, and on a charge of law-breaking brought 
by his enemies, he was thrown into prison and loaded 
with chains. From this evil strait he was liberated 
by death in about 1666. During the years of his 
ascendancy he had worked with single-hearted zeal 
in the cause of the faith, and it is said that between 
the years 1660 and 1664 a hundred thousand converts 
were claimed by the Church through the instrumen- 
tality of Schall and his co-workers. At one time the 
Emperor K'anghsi showed a disposition which tended 
towards conversion. But this wished-for consumma- 
tion was never achieved, though the Emperor's 
mother, wife, and son all received baptism, which rite 
was also sought and received by fifty ladies of the 
Court. 

As men of science the missionaries received every 
consideration from the Emperor, and though they 
were disposed at times to consider that his attitude 
towards Christianity was satisfactory, it is plain that 
in his heart of hearts he viewed the subject with 
all the perfect indifference of a faithful follower of 
Confucius. 

" Why do you so much trouble yourselves," he 
asked on one occasion of a spiritual adviser, " about 
a world which you have never yet entered ? " and 
adopting the, to him, canonical view, he expressed his 
opinion that it would be much wiser if they thought 
less of the world to come, and more of the present 
life. It is possible that when he said this he may 



62 THE YUAN AND MING DYNASTIES 

have had in his mind the dying word of Ferdinand 
de Capillas, who suffered martyrdom in 1648, " I 
have had no home but the world," said this priest, as 
he faced his last earthly judge, " no bed but the 
ground, no food but what Providence sent me from 
day to day, and no other object than to do and suffer 
for the glory of Jesus Christ, and for the eternal 
happiness of those who believe in His Name." 

It is possible also that the dissensions which broke 
out among the Roman Catholic missionaries in China 
during the last half of the seventeenth century may 
have had something to do with the cynical attitude 
adopted by K'anghsi towards them. In 165 1 a party 
of Dominicans arrived in China to supplement the 
work being done by the Jesuits. These latest arrivals 
had no sooner landed than they became shocked at 
the wise latitude allowed by the Jesuits in matters of 
religious forms. With the wisdom of the serpent, 
and, as it had hitherto proved, with the harmlessness 
of the dove, the Jesuits, in their desire to gain 
intellectual dominion over the people, had granted 
admission into their services of practices which 
savoured somewhat of the superstitious rites of the 
natives. The ancient and respectable worship of 
Ancestors received their approval on the plea that it 
was rather a civil than a religious service. They had 
adopted also the abstract term T'ien, or Heaven, for 
the Christian God, and made no objection to the 
exhibition in their churches of scrolls bearing the 
inscription, "Worship Heaven." The Dominicans, 
fresh from Rome, and unaccustomed to the casuistry 
which by long practice had become part of the Jesuit 



MISSIONARY QUARRELS 



63 



character, at once set their faces against these 
practices. The Jesuits, firm in the inherited wisdom 
of Ricci, refused to hsten to what they considered to 
be the carping criticism of their opponents, and 
decHned to make any alterations in their practices. 
The Dominicans appealed to Rome, and after much 
doubt and controversy, a papal decree was issued 
proclaiming the worship of ancestors to be a 
heathenish practice, and one which was not to be 
for a moment sanctioned by the Holy Mother 
Church. 




Ill 



THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 



While yet the influence of Ricci was supreme at 

Peking, and while yet Wanli sat on the throne, the 

Manchu power was rising in the north-east, which 

was destined ultimately to bring all China under its 

yoke. After the defeat of the Kin Tartars by the 

Mongols in the thirteenth century, scattered bands 

had made their way back to their original haunts in 

the neighbourhood of Moukden. Many of these 

men had added military skill to their warlike natures, 

and thus formed a formidable though small body 

of warriors in the midst of the various tribes of 

Manchus who inhabited the surrounding territories. 

Among these wandering and superstitious people a 

miracle was proclaimed. While a Manchu maiden 

was seated on the shores of the lake whose waters 

lap the sides of the Long White Mountain, a 

magpie dropped a red fruit into her lap. The 

maiden ate the fruit and straightway conceived a son, 

whose name was called Aisin Gioro, the Golden. 

Such a birth entitled the infant to the highest honours, 

64 



NURHACHU 



65 



and with one consent he was elected to the chieftain- 
ship of the clan. To this chieftain succeeded in 




A MONUMENT AT MOUKDEN. 



course of time his son, whose grandson, Nurhachu, 
born in 1559, was destined to justify his miraculous 

6 



66 



THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 



origin by vanquishing for himself and his successors 
the ancient Empire of China. 

As Nurhachu reached manhood he took an active 
part in the affairs of his tribe, and by virtue of his 








A MANCHU OFFICIAL AND LADY. 



descent was, in the natural order of things, proclaimed 
chieftain of it. His appearance is said to have 
indicated the future that lay before him. Native 
writers love to dwell on his dragon face and phoenix 



MANCHU VICTORIES 6y 

eyes, his enormous chest, his large ears, and his deep- 
toned voice. These features, by common behef, 
belong to leaders of men, and if they graced the 
frame of Nurhachu they were certainly truer omens 
than are most signs and forecasts. At this time the 
Manchus were divided up into numberless small 
clans which were scattered in the wide district which 
divides the great wall from the Amur, and the first 
task to which Nurhachu devoted himself was to weld 
these scattered tribes into one confederacy. Good 
fortune attended his efforts, and the extent of his 
success may be estimated by the jealousy with which 
he was viewed by rival chieftains. At first the 
Chinese, who considered themselves the lords para- 
mount over the Manchurian tribes, regarded the 
movement as being too insignificant to require their 
attention. Besides, at this time local riots and some- 
what serious rebellions were disturbing the peace of 
several of the provinces of the Empire. At length 
Wanli, who still sat on the throne at Peking, was 
roused to action by such complaints as the defeated 
are always ready to bring against a successful foe, 
and he took up the cause of a certain Nikan, who 
was of all others Nurhachu's chief opponent. Like 
other people, the Chinese often make the mistake of 
despising their enemies, and in the campaign which 
followed they suffered the penalty of their misguided 
folly. In 1 591 Nurhachu had so far advanced his 
cause as to be able to annex the Yalu district. Such 
an obvious proof of his success was gall and worm- 
wood to those neighbouring chieftains who had held 
aloof from his confederacy, and seven of these dis- 



68 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

contented rulers banded themselves together to rob 
him of the legitimate rewards of his wisdom and 
foresight. At the head of thirty thousand men they 
marched out to meet the four thousand who fought 
under his banners. But Nurhachu, who had all the 
military ability of a Napoleon, defeated the allies in 
detail and slew four thousand of their chosen warriors. 
This success tempted him to further ventures, and as 
a preliminary step he opened his plan of campaign 
by an assault on the Liaotung peninsula. This was 
a direct attack on the Empire of China, and to justify 
so extreme a measure he drew up a statement of 
the seven grievances which he brought against his 
powerful neighbour, the first of which described in 
general terms the grounds of his several indictments. 
" Though my ancestors," he wrote, " never took a 
straw from, nor injured an inch of earth within, the 
Chinese boundary, the Chinese were unceasingly 
quarrelling with them, and without just reason abetted 
my neighbours to the great injury of my ancestors." 

The other six complaints described in detail the 
specific acts of which he complained. In the follow- 
ing year (1618) he opened the campaign by crossing 
the Chinese frontier and capturing the cities of Fushun 
and Chingho. 

The Chinese were now fully alarmed ; but as has so 
often happened in the history of the Empire, they had 
so overlooked the beginning of the evil that by the 
time they took the field they found themselves face to 
face with a large and well-equipped army, instead of 
the roving bands of banditti which had represented 
the original force of the movement. The saying that 



CHINESE SOLDIERS 



69 




70 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

Providence is on the side of large battalions is one of 
those aphorisms which does not apply to Chinese 
battlefields. We have lately seen how, though 
numerically inferior, the Japanese defeated, put to 
flight, and destroyed the huge masses of troops 
which the Chinese were able to bring against them in 
Korea and in those districts over which Nurhachu 
in his day manoeuvred. And in this instance it was 
as inapplicable as during the late war. A hundred 
thousand Chinese troops marched against the 60,000 
who followed the Niuchi chieftain, and if in executing 
his tactics the general commanding had desired to 
place himself and his men in the hollow of his adver- 
sary's hand, he could not have acted better than he 
did. With fatal consequences he divided his army 
into three forces, and thus gave Nurhachu the oppor- 
tunity which he desired. With unerring instinct he 
recognised his opponent's mistake, and by a series of 
rapid movements he fought the three armies in detail, 
and practically annihilated them. It is said that in 
these engagements 310 general officers and 45,000 
soldiers were slain. The baggage of the vanquished 
also fell into the hands of the Manchus, who thus 
became possessed of welcome stores with which to 
replenish and supplement the very defective supplies 
of their men. 

It so happened that just when the news of the first 
reverses reached Peking the Portuguese Envoy, Gon- 
salvo de Texeira, arrived at the capital on a mission 
connected with the settlement at Macao. Finding 
the Government in a dire strait, the Envoy, on the 
principle of Do ut des, offered to supply a Portuguese 



PORTUGUESE AUXILIARIES 



71 



contingent to help the Imperial forces against the 
invader. Chinese pride has never been able to resist the 
offer of help in times of emergency. The mandarins 
may profess to despise the foreign barbarians and all 
their works, but whether against the invading Manchus 
or the rebellious T'aip'ings they have always shown a 
readiness to avail themselves of any assistance which 




A STREET SCENE IN MOUKDEX. 



foreigners have chosen to offer. In this case they in- 
stantly accepted the Envoy's proposal, and a corps of two 
hundred Portuguese arquebusiers,with an equal number 
of drilled and equipped natives, were enrolled for the 
service. With a certain amount of parade this small 
force travelled from Macao to Peking. But by the 
time they reached the capital, however, the Emperor's 



J 2 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

alarm had subsided, and his zeal having consequently 
diminished, the Portuguese commander was politely 
requested to leave his guns, and to march his men 
back to Macao. It is on record that the guns so 
borrowed eventually did good service against the 
enemy. 

But though effective these weapons failed to check 
the march of the Manchus, who, after a difficult siege, 
captured the city of Moukden, and marched to the 
attack of Liaoyang. Here a vigorous defence was 
offered, and the city yielded only when the entire gar- 
rison had been put to the sword. After the capture 
of this city the native historians mention incidentally 
that the townspeople acknowledged allegiance to their 
new masters by shaving their heads. This is the first 
reference to be met with of the custom of shaving the 
head and wearing the pigtail, which is now the uni- 
versal custom in China. Such a subject is generally 
beneath the notice of Chinese writers of history, who 
never trouble themselves to chronicle anything but the 
events occurring in court and camp during the period 
of which they write. Their silence on this point 
leaves the origin of the practice obscure, and whether 
it was a Manchu custom or one which was only then 
adopted as a sign of conquest, we have no means of 
ascertaining. 

Meanwhile disturbances of a serious nature broke 
out in the Province of Szech'uan, and in the existing 
distracted state of the country the Emperor's forces 
would have had great difficulty in re-establishing order 
in this outlying district, had not a native heroine 
stepped into the breach. Tsinliang, the female 



A CHINESE JOAN OF ARC 



73 



chieftain of one of the aboriginal tribes in the Pro- 
vince, Hke another Joan of Arc, raised a large force 
on the outbreak of hostilities, to supplement the small 
army which the Emperor was able to put into the 
field. Success attended Tsinliang's efforts and the 
Province was recovered for 
the Imperialists. But this 
rising was only one symp- 
tom of the evil which was 
germinating in the body 
politic. In Yunnan and 
Kweichow leaders arose, 
who led the unruly and 
disaffected after them, and 
at the same time an equally 
serious outbreak occurred in 
the North-eastern Province 
of Shantung, where, before 
the prowess and skill of a 
chief named Shu, a number 
of cities yielded themselves 
to his arms. Shu, however, 
with all his ability, had not 
the makings of a permanent 
leader of men, and at his 
first reverse his followers 
deserted him. 

But the cloud which was really charged with danger 
to the dynasty lay over the north-eastern portion of 
the Empire, where Nurhachu was still threatening the 
frontier. In his various raids and expeditions he was, 
with one exception, uniformly successful ; but it 




A CHINESE GENERAL. 



74 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

chanced that at the city of Ningyuan to the north of 
the Great Wall, there was stationed a general whose 
eminent ability and cool courage enabled him for a 
time, at least, to turn back the tide of war. Against 
this fortress Nurhachu made two vigorous attacks, and 
on both occasions was defeated with heavy loss. Had 
the defenders of the walls been dependent on native 
arms alone the result may possibly have been dif- 
ferent. But the guns which the Portuguese had 
brought from Macao, and which were supplemented 
by others cast under the superintendence of the 
Jesuits at Peking, stood on the battlements, and 
against these destructive weapons the Manchus failed 
even to hold their own. Nurhachu was now an 
elderly man, and this second failure was more than 
his declining energies could enable him to withstand. 
With a sense of his impending doom upon him, he 
withdrew his troops to Moukden, where in 1626 death 
brought to an end a great and memorable career. 
The mantle of the deceased warrior fell on his fourth 
son, T'ientsung. At first this new sovereign showed 
some inclination to come to terms with China ; but 
if his desire was genuine he, to say the least, made 
his advances in a most unfortunate fashion : " There 
is only one sun in the heavens and only one Emperor 
beneath the sky," is the Chinese saying, and so far as 
the extreme east of Asia is concerned there is some 
justification for the boast. When, therefore, T'ien- 
tsung addressed the Emperor on equal terms, the 
Imperial advisers were taken aback at his audacity. 
Nor was their irritation diminished when news 
reached the capital that the Manchus had invaded 



DEATH OF THE EMPEROR 



75 



Korea, and had crushed it beneath their heels. Nego- 
tiations for peace, therefore, did not prosper, and 
T'ientsung determined, in default of successful negotia- 
tions, to take up arms against his foes. But the city 
of Ningyuan still stood between him and his prey, 
and his forces fared no better before its walls than had 
his father's legions. While the Manchus were thus 




A MAX'CHURIAN THEATRE. 



being held at arms' length by this faithful city, the 
Chinese Emperor, T'iench'i, became a guest on high 
(1627), and was succeeded by his younger brother, 
T'sungcheng. The renowned skill and valour of the 
defender of Ningyuan were, as the Manchus were well 
aware, rare qualities in Chinese generals, and T'ien- 
tsung^ knew with equal certainty that if he could once 



^6 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

pass this invincible fortress he might achieve easy 
victories in the fertile plains of Northern China. It 
is a common axiom of war that it is unsafe to advance 
into an enemy's country while leaving a strong uncon- 
quered fortress in the rear of the invading force. There 
are, however, exceptions to this dictum, and T'ientsung 
rightly considered that this was one. Acting on his 
instinctive perception, he proposed to his generals that 
he should mask Ningyuan and march at once on 
Peking. The idea was so bold that it met with oppo- 
sition, which, however, finally yielded to argument, 
and the order of march was given. Assisted by his 
Mongolian allies T'ientsung led his troops south- 
ward through the Ta-an and other passes. By these 
routes the Manchu army poured into the plains, 
leaving a small force to represent the main body 
before Ningyuan. Chunghwan, the defender of Ning- 
yuan, was not long deceived by this manoeuvre. He 
felt that he was out of touch with his adversary, and 
his suspicions were confirmed by his scouts, who 
brought him news of the adventurous advance of the 
enemy. Without a moment's hesitation he deter- 
mined on the course to be pursued. He knew the 
capital was insufficiently garrisoned, and he resolved 
at once to march to its relief Then began a race 
between the two armies, and though the Manchus had 
some days' start the delay occasioned by the neces- 
sary investment of cities by the way, enabled Chung- 
hwan to reach Peking first. The presence of this very 
formidable opponent convinced T'ientsung that his 
chances of taking the city by fair means were very 
considerably diminished, and he therefore entered into 



A TREACHEROUS PLOT 



77 



a plot to bring about the downfall of the great Chinese 
general. The scheme he adopted was as mean as it 
was successful. He induced some of his officers to hold 
a conversation within earshot of two of the palace 
eunuchs whom he had taken prisoners. The burden 
of their conversation was that Chunghwan had turned 
traitor, and had agreed to open the gates of the city 




TRAVELLING IN MANCHURIA. 



to the Manchus. So soon as the subtle poison had 
entered the ears of the eunuchs the prison doors were 
left unguarded, and the captives were allowed to 
escape to tell their Imperial master of the supposed 
treachery of the man in whom he trusted. Fully be- 
lieving the truth of the story, the Emperor summoned 
Chunghwan to his presence, when, without giving him 



78 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

any opportunity of defending himself against the 
slander, he condemned him to prison and to the exe- 
cution ground. But even without the strength which 
Chunghwan's presence had added to the garrison 
T'ientsung felt unable to carry the city, and being 
unwilling to continue engaging in the constant 
encounters which merely tended to harass his troops, 
he raised the siege and retired northwards. The 
Chinese, who always prefer following a retreating 
rather than facing an advancing enemy, hung on his 
line of march and recaptured several cities which had 
previously yielded to the Manchu attack. 

In this direction the Imperial prospects had im- 
proved, but the advantage was only momentary. The 
Emperor had scarcely ceased to congratulate himself 
on the retreat of the Manchus when news was brought 
him of the outbreak of a more than usually formid- 
able rebellion in the province of Shensi. This revolt 
was headed by the two powerful rebel leaders, Chang 
and Li, who, at first, according to the historians, fared 
badly at the hands of the army sent against them. 
But Chinese reports from battlefields are not 
always to be trusted. On one occasion, however, it is 
certain that the Imperialists gained a victory. But 
this advantage they, with a folly which would be in- 
conceivable except on the ground of treachery, turned 
to their own detriment. Having driven the rebel 
force commanded by Li into the mountains they de- 
manded an unconditional surrender. To this they 
were plainly entitled, for so impossible did escape 
appear to be that Li at once agreed to lay down his 
arms, though with a certain effrontery he added the 



THE FIRST MANCUU ARTILLERY 79 

condition that he and his men should be allowed to 
go their way in safety. To these extravagant terms 
the Chinese general agreed, and the army had the 
mortification of seeing thirty-six thousand rebels, who 
had been completely at their mercy, march off scot 
free. 

The retreat of T'ientsung into Manchuria was by no 
means indicative of an intention to give up his great 
enterprise ; rather, it was with the idea of preparing 
for another spring at the prize which was destined to 
fall into his country's hands. It was at this crisis that 
the Manchus, for the first time, provided themselves 
with artillery, having learnt by experience that the 
god of battles was in the habit of lending his counte- 
nance to the destructive guns of the foreigners. As a 
preliminary plan of campaign they overran the dis- 
tricts in Mongolia bordering on the Great Wall, and 
then turned their attention to the strongly-fortified 
city of Tungchow, which, after resisting their attack 
for some time, fell into their hands, together with the 
fortified position of Sungshan. But in T'ientsung's 
opinion these advantages availed him little so long as 
Ningyuan, which was now commanded by the cele- 
brated general Wu Sankwei, held out against him. 
With this fortress in his rear he dared not advance in 
force against Peking, and pending its capture he was 
obliged to content himself with raiding expeditions into 
some of the northern provinces of the Empire. But 
the fates were adverse to him, and in their wisdom 
had decreed that, though in sight of the promised 
land, the possession of the goodly heritage should be 
left to other hands than his. At the early age of 



8o THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

fifty-two death overtook him at Moukden, in 1643, 
not, however, before he had assumed the Imperial 
Purple and had given to his dynasty the name of 
Ta Ch'ing, which it still bears. 

Meanwhile the Li and Chang rebellion had been 
making way in the provinces. In Shensi, Shansi, and 
Honan the first named had become all powerful, and 
to Chang's lot had fallen considerable success in 
Hupeh and Kiangnan. At Hsiangyang one of those 
curious coincidences which occasionally befall adven- 
turers occurred to Chang. On entering the city he, by 
chance, discovered his wife and children, who had been 
captured by the Imperialists some ten months before, 
living quietly among the people. That they had not 
met the common doom of the relatives of rebels is 
probably to be attributed less to the mercy of their 
captors than to the idea that they might be held as 
hostages to tempt Chang to return to his allegiance. 
Though generally victory sided with Li he met with 
failure before K'aifeng. What Ningyuan had been to 
T'ientsung, that city was to Li. His repeated attacks 
on the fortress were as vain as the washing of the waves 
against a rock, and after numerous assaults, in one of 
which he lost an eye, he determined to adopt a 
desperate expedient such as is happily unknown in 
civilised warfare. Within a short distance of the city 
walls flows the sluggish stream of the Yellow River 
between high banks which rise up at a considerable 
elevation above the plain. All that was necessary to 
effect the ruin of the city was to make a breach in the 
embankment so as to flood, as has often happened in 
the history of the Empire, the neighbouring districts. 



A DESPERATE EXPEDIENT 8 1 

The breach was made, and the water swept over the 
plain and into the city, devastating the country and 
destroying both Imperiahsts and rebels alike. A 
million people are said to have perished in this fearful 
catastrophe, Li himself losing ten thousand men in 
the waters. But his object was gained, and what Li's 
soldiers could not effect the Yellow River accom- 
plished. When the breach was filled in and the flood 
had subsided the rebel banners floated on the ramparts 
of the stronghold. 

Li now felt his position to be sufficiently strong to 
justify him in proclaiming himself king, a title which 
satisfied his ambition for one year. At the end of 
that time his taste coming with eating he took to him- 
self the title of Emperor and named the dynasty 
which he hoped to found, the T'ai Shun. Further, in 
imitation of the existing system of government, he 
appointed six Boards of office, and satisfied the crav- 
ings of his followers by establishing ranks of nobility 
to which he freely admitted them. 

Having thus placed himself on the throne it only re- 
mained for him to make himself master of the capital, 
and to accomplish this object he undertook an adven- 
turous expedition towards Peking. By the way he cap- 
tured T'aiyuan, the capital of Shansi, and then led his 
triumphant warriors against the stronghold of Ningwu. 
This fortress was strongly garrisoned and valiantly 
held, nor was it taken until ten thousand of the 
besiegers had licked the dust, and the city had been 
given to the flames. The resistance which the 
Chinese had here offered gave Li a pause which, how- 
ever, was of short duration. Unexpectedly, while 

7 



82 



THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 



musing on the possibilities of a retreat, news reached 
him of the surrender of the cities of Tat'ung and 
Hsunhwa. The road to Peking was thus open to 
him, and with as Httle delay as possible he presented 
himself before the walls of the capital. 

Numerically the garrison of Peking was quite large 
enough to defend the city, but it is safe to assert that 




MINING IN SHANSI. 



no Chinese army is ever so numerous and powerful as 
it appears to be on paper. Even, however, with the 
army as it was, it is possible that a stout defence might 
have been made, and that the city might have been 
held until a relieving force had come to the rescue. 
But other influences were at work, and the commander 
of the southern gates, a man " composed and framed 



CAPTURE OF PEKING 83 

of treachery," opened his gate to the enemy. A faint- 
hearted defence of the palace was made by men who 
were more concerned for their own safety than for the 
preservation of the dynasty, and the Emperor, instead 
of placing himself at the head of his troops, and either 
losing his life or saving his throne, took to flight. 
From the top of a hill-which stands in the northern 
portion of the city, he looked down upon a scene of 
bloodshed and conflagration such as is the common 
fate of captured cities in the East. Finding that 
escape on the northern side was impossible he returned 
to the city, hoping to find a way open to him in some 
other direction. But the rebel forces on all sides 
barred his exit. Thus confronted with difficulty he 
returned to the hill and, having written a letter im- 
ploring the rebels to spare his people, he hung himself 
on a tree. It is a curious illustration of the Chinese 
reverence for a royal race that by order of the first 
Emperor of the present dynasty this tree was loaded 
with chains in token of the crime it had committed in 
being instrumental to the death of a Son of Heaven. 
Li was now in possession of Peking, and in 
obedience to the usual custom in such cases, the 
magnates of the capital who had survived the siege 
presented themselves at Court to pay their homage to 
him. Among these was a certain Wu whose son, Wu 
Sankwei, had succeeded Chunghwan in the command 
at Ningyuan, and had held that fortress with all the 
courage of his predecessor. On the approach of Li's 
army the Emperor had ordered this officer to march 
to the relief of the capital. While on the way thither 
news reached him of the fall of Peking and the death 



-84 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

of the Emperor. Almost simultaneously a messenger 
arrived bearing a letter from his father urging him to 
offer his submission to Li, and enforcing his entreaties 
by the news that the lives of himself and the other 
members of the family at Peking depended on his 
giving in his allegiance. At first Wu Sankwei was 
inclined to consent, but while he was yet wavering the 
messenger informed him of an event which at once 
induced him to take the opposite course. 

In not a few instances in the world's history a 
woman has changed the fates of Empires, and in 
this case a young slave girl was indirectly the cause of 
the ultimate triumph of the present Manchu dynasty 
in China. Before he had left Peking to take up the 
command of Ningyuan, Wu Sankwei had been pre- 
sented by a friend with a young slave girl who added 
great beauty to her many virtues. It was possibly 
with the thought of saving her from the general mas- 
sacre which, as a Chinaman, he knew would overtake 
the inhabitants of Peking if surrendered to Li, that at 
the first summons he had marched with alacrity to 
the relief of the capital. 

He now learnt from the messenger that Ch'enyuan, 
as the lady was called, had been given as part of the 
spoil of the city to a rebel officer. After this outrage 
submission to the guilty powers was impossible, and 
he obviously had no compliments to exchange with 
the triumphant rebel. In his anger he wrote two 
notable letters, one upbraiding his father for yielding 
the lady to the embraces of a rebel, and another to 
the regent of the Manchus, inviting him to combine 
with him in an attack upon the new ruler of Peking. 



AN OUTRAGED HUSBAND 



85 



This startling turn of events made it incumbent on Li 
to march against the alHes. At the approach of the 




A MANCHU LADY. 



rebel legions, Wu Sankwel, who had returned to the 
fortress of Shanhai Kwan, made every preparation to 



86 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

oppose the advancing host. Thinking it possible 
that the sight of his father might cause Wu Sankwei 
to relent and submit, Li ordered that the old man 
should be led out within sight of the walls. With 
tears and entreaties the father implored his son to 
save his life by submitting. But the recollection of 
the slave girl at Peking was too fresh in his memory 
to allow him to yield, and in a few words he declared 
that no power on earth would induce him to surrender 
his command to rebels, and to rebels who had inflicted 
such a wrong upon him. The duty of filial obedience 
is the first moral law recognised by the Chinese, and 
in any other circumstances Wu Sankwei would 
doubtless have submitted. But his affections out- 
weighed his sense of duty, and he did not hesitate a 
moment in virtually sentencing his father to death. 
Seeing that it was hopeless to expect to win over so 
determined an enemy, Li gave the order for the 
execution of the elder Wu, and in the sight of the 
two contending armies the old man suffered death by 
decapitation. 

It was plain that there was now a breach between 
the two commanders that nothing could bridge over, 
and Wu Sankwei determined to take what revenge 
he could by marching against the enemy. It is said 
that Li's force numbered 220,000 men. But nothing 
awed by these huge battalions, the Imperialist general 
marched out from the cover of the fortress and gave 
battle. So fierce was the onslaught of the Im- 
perialists that the rebel cavalry were driven back on 
their supports. These joined in the engagement, 
and but for the undaunted courage of Wu and his 



A GREAT BATTLE 87 

men would certainly have overwhelmed them. As 
the day wore on it became plain that their ruin was 
inevitable had not the Manchu Regent, Durgun, 
prepared a seasonable relief. A large force of his 
men who had been disposed in secret and difficult 
passes in the mountains suddenly assailed the rebels, 
who were already rejoicing in the belief that the 
victory was won. This favourable change in the 
conditions was improved by the valour of Wu. He 
revived the courage of his troops, and pressed the 
rebels on every side. The Regent's manoeuvre was 
completely successful. The rebels, taken by surprise, 
reeled under the shock of the charge of the Manchu 
cavalry, and after a short and half-hearted stand 
turned and fled. For fourteen miles the allies 
followed the flying enemy and slaughtered them in 
hecatombs. To Wu was assigned the duty of 
following still further in pursuit, while the Manchu 
Regent returned to Shanhai Kwan to rest his troops, 
who were already exhausted by their long and hurried 
march from Manchuria. 

Li fled to Peking, where, having possessed himself 
of everything valuable that was portable, and having 
ordered the execution of the family and dependents 
of Wu, he set fire to the Palace and continued his 
flight westwards. With the dogged tenacity of a 
sleuthhound Wu followed at his heels, and, 
strengthened by the prestige of victory, inflicted a 
series of defeats on the disheartened rebels. There 
is always a tendency to desert a falling cause, and 
more especially is this true in China, where success is 
the national test of merit. Li's men were now 



55 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

suffering the dire consequences of an unsuccessful 
rebellion, and they deserted his banners in whole 
battalions. With but twenty followers, and destitute 
of both food and clothing, the wretched band of 
discomfited rebels were driven to supply their wants 
by plundering the poverty-stricken peasantry of 
Shensi, Unfortunately for them their numbers were 
insufficient to overawe the pillaged rustics, who, 
seizing the implements of their toil, turned on their 
oppressors, and cut them down one by one. When 
Wu's troops reached Li's final halting place they 
found nothing but the bodies of the arch rebel and 
his dwindled following. 

Meanwhile the Regent Dorgun, who held the reins 
of government for his infant nephew and sovereign, 
entered Peking in triumph (1644). The city was well- 
nigh burnt to the ground, for Wu Sankwei's beautiful 
slave girl had, like another Helen, fired another Troy. 
In these circumstances Dorgun recognised that his 
first duties, if he was to establish a dynasty, were to 
reassure the people by establishing order, and to 
calm, so far as possible, the proud susceptibilities of 
the upper classes by showing regard to their 
prejudices. He therefore issued a proclamation 
which was more conspicuous for its policy than for 
its truth. He assured the people in it that his one 
object in marching into the capital was to save them 
from the pillage and violence of the rebel Li ; and he 
urged them to rebuild the ruined city, promising to 
protect their goods and property against all comers. 
At the same time he conferred the posthumous title 
of " The sedate and heroic Emperor " on the 



REMOVAL OF CAPITAL 



89 



Sovereign who had put an end to his existence on 
the hill above Peking. By a stroke of the pen he 




MAXXHU WOIviEN AND CHILD. 



proclaimed the removal of the capital from Moukden 
to Peking, and directed that his nephew, who was 



90 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

then but six years old, should join him at the latter 
city. The revolution was now complete, and the 
new Dynasty established which still holds possession 
of the throne. The young Emperor adopted the 
title of Shunchih. 

During the reigns of the Ming Emperors the 
palace eunuchs, as has often happened in the history 
of the Empire, acquired additional power as the 
hands which held the reins of government became 
increasingly nerveless. The danger of such a 
shameful usurpation of authority is sufficiently 
obvious, and was fully recognised by Dorgun, who 
issued an order that henceforth no eunuch should be 
allowed to hold any official office under the crown, 
and to the present day this law holds force. So 
generally conciliatory, however, to all ranks was 
Dorgun's attitude that the upper classes in the 
neighbourhood of the capital readily gave in their 
adhesion to his rule. So far all was well, but in the 
Provinces a very different state of things prevailed. 
The inhabitants of the central provinces had had no 
knowledge of the exactions and cruelties of Li and 
his confederates, nor had they experienced the relief 
that had been felt at Peking by the substitution of a 
settled government for a rebel tyranny. The fact 
also that for the most part they were free from the 
taint of Manchu blood naturally inclined them to 
take a line against the invaders. For this last reason 
it has always been that among the people of the 
South, the Ming Dynasty has found its strongest 
supporters. In modern times it will be remembered 
that the T'aip'ing rebellion, which had for its proposed 



THE LAST THROES OF A DYNASTY 9 1 

object the restoration of the Chinese rulers, first took 
shape in Kwangsi, and the very powerful secret 
Society, the Kolaohwei, which has its strongest base 
on the shores of the Yang-tsze-kiang, has for its 
motto, " overthrow the Ch'ing and restore the Ming." 
At this time in the old capital of the first Sovereign 
of the Ming Dynasty, there arose a scholar Shih 
K'ofa, who adopted, in principle, the motto of the 
Kolaohwei, and aroused his compatriots in defence 
of the expiring line of Sovereigns. So formidable 
was the movement that the Regent Dorgun thought 
it wisest and best to open negotiations with the rebel. 
But Shih declined to listen to the appeals made to 
him, and declared that matters had reached such a 
crisis that the decision of their quarrel must be left 
to the arbitrament of war. Meanwhile, on the death 
of the Ming Emperor Ts'ungcheng, it had become 
necessary to elect a successor to the throne, and the 
choice fell on Fu Wang, a son of the prince of that 
name, who had been Wan Li's favourite son, and who 
had returned the kindness shown him by his father by 
rebelling against him. A more unfortunate choice 
could not have been made. For such an emergency 
a Sovereign was required who should be a man 
endowed with wisdom, courage, and energy. In all 
these qualities Fu Wang was signally wanting, and 
he spent in lust and riot time which should have been 
devoted to furthering his cause, and consolidating 
his forces. In the campaign which followed on the 
marching of the Manchu army to suppress the revolt, 
Fu Wang was rather an encumbrance than otherwise, 
and the whole conduct of the war fell upon Shih. 



92 



THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 



On the lower waters of the Yang-tsze-kiang, and 
close to the junction of the Grand Canal with that 




river, stands the ancient city of Yangchow, which 
commands the approach to Nanking from the north 



SACK OF YANGCHOW 93 

Here Shih took his stand, and awaited the attack of 
the enemy. Nor was this attack long delayed. 
Accustomed to lengthened marches, and constant 
fatigues, the Manchus passed rapidly over country 
which represented leisurely marches to less nomadic 
troops, and appeared suddenly before the walls. For 
seven days the fighting lasted around the doomed 
city, and at the end of that time the Manchus rushed 
to the assault. The exhausted garrison failed to 
withstand the terrible onslaught, and in the midst of 
awful bloodshed the city fell. The diary of a 
contemporary inhabitant of Yangchow has lately 
been published, and from it it is easy to gather both 
that the arrival of the Manchus before the walls was 
quite unexpected, and that the slaughter of the 
inhabitants even after the city was taken was carried 
out with brutal cruelty and thoroughness. Shih was 
cut down as he was attempting to make his escape 
by way of the north gate, and his troops were 
slaughtered almost to a man. Leaving a garrison 
within the walls the Manchu leader marched on to 
Nanking, where the puppet Fu Wang was indulging 
in all the vices and follies common to Oriental 
sovereigns of the baser sort. In the midst of a 
drunken carouse the news was brought him of the 
approach of the Manchus. To men of Imperial 
calibre such a juncture would have suggested that he 
should place himself at the head of his troops and 
march against the enemy. But the only idea which 
occurred to Fu Wang was to fly from his capital, 
leaving it a prey to the advancing hosts. His flight 
availed him nothing, for he was speedily overtaken by 



94 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

a mounted force sent in pursuit, and was brought a 
prisoner into Nanking, where after a short shrift he 
was beheaded. 

For three days Ch'ang Wang, who succeeded 
Fu Wang, enjoyed the empty title of Emperor and 
held court for that brief period at Hangchow. But 
the valour of the early Ming Sovereigns had long 
exhausted itself, and instead of attempting to defend 
the city he opened the gates to the enemy on the 
understanding that they should spare the lives of 
himself and of the inhabitants. Oriental leaders are 
bad people to treat with in such emergencies, and 
though in this case the people were left unmolested, 
the first act of the Manchu leader was to order the 
execution of the occupier of the Ming throne. The 
next to assume the Imperial purple was T'ang Wang, 
a descendant of Hungwu, the first Sovereign of the 
Ming Dynasty. Though this man showed more of 
the royal spirit than his immediate predecessors had 
done, all his efforts to oppose the Manchus proved 
fruitless, and the whole of the rich and fertile district 
embracing the cities of Ningpo, Shanghai, W^enchow, 
and T'aichow fell into the hands of the invaders. At 
Tingchow T'ang Wang was captured, and there the 
usual fate of defeated sovereigns overtook him. 

But though defeated everywhere on land, hopes 
were still entertained that the immense fleet com- 
manded by Cheng Chihlung might yet turn the 
tide of war. Admiral Cheng was a native of the 
maritime Province of Fuhkien, and had in early life 
come under the influence of the Roman Catholic 
missionaries who laboured in the cause of their faith 



A PIRATE 95 

in that province. Being of a restless disposition and 
probably attracted by his Portuguese fathers in God, 
he migrated to Macao and thence drifted to Manila, 
and subsequently to Japan. Like most foreign 
visitors to Japan he fell under the charm of the 
women of that country, and eventually took one to 
wife by whom a son was born, who was named Cheng 
Kung. Cheng's early years had been passed in 
poverty, and, following the instincts of his race, his 
one absorbing desire was to court the god of wealth. 
When, therefore, an opportunity presented itself for 
laying the foundation of an enormous fortune, which, 
however, any honourable man would have disre- 
garded, he seized on it without a scruple. Having 
wormed himself into the good graces of a Japanese 
merchant he induced his employer to entrust him 
with a rich cargo for the China markets. On arriv- 
ing at Foochow he, without the slightest compunc- 
tion, appropriated the cargo, and with the proceeds 
fitted out a fleet of piratical junks, with which he 
harried the coast and plundered the merchant ship- 
ping. So successful was he in these enterprises that 
he quickly amassed colossal wealth, and with it 
gained considerable power and importance. Follow- 
ing a time-honoured precedent, the Emperor, fearing 
to combat him, made overtures to the successful 
pirate, on whom, at his submission to the throne, he 
conferred the rank of Admiral. With honeyed words 
the new commander was invited to Peking, and once 
there was placed in the position of a state prisoner. 
So long as the Emperor Shunchih reigned he was 
allowed to live at ease within the city walls, for the 



96 



THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 



Emperor, like another David, had promised that no 
harm should befall him while under his protection. 
But whether with or without the treacherous message 




addressed to Solomon with which David sealed 
Joab's fate, the Emperor had no sooner become a 
guest on high than the Regents appointed during the 



KOXINGA 97 

minority of his successor, threw the late pirate into 
prison, and eventually sent him to the execution 
ground. The son born to Cheng by his Japanese wife 
had at an early period attracted the attention of the 
Emperor. At the extraordinarily youthful age of 
fifteen this scion of the pirate took his degree at the 
competitive examinations, and as a reward for his 
eminent ability the Emperor conferred on him his 
own surname of Chu, and further honoured him by 
expressing a regret that he had no daughter to 
bestow upon him in marriage. 

From the circumstance of his having received the 
Imperial surname he was designated Kwosingye 
("Possessor of the National Surname"), which has 
been corrupted by foreigners into Koxinga. When 
Admiral Cheng was invited to Peking the Emperor 
hoped that Koxinga would have accompanied him. 
But the young man feared the Imperial messengers 
with their gifts, and instead of journeying with his 
father northwards, carried off a fleet which he had 
collected and sailed to the Pescadores, where he forti- 
fied himself against all comers. 

Meanwhile the rebellion in the provinces continued 
with varying success. At one time Kwei Wang, who 
had succeeded to the Ming throne on the death of 
T'ang Wang, appeared to be gaining ground. Irb 
Kiangsi and Kwangtung his generals were victorious, 
and the great prize of Canton fell into his hands. 
But once more the tide turned, and the people of the 
provinces and cities had scarcely yet learned to 
pronounce again the shibboleth of the Ming Dynasty 
when such of them as survived again passed under 

8 



98 THE RISE OE THE MANCHUS 

the Manchu rule. On the recapture of Canton, 
Koxinga, who had favoured the Ming cause in so 
far as it chimed in with his piratical instincts, gave 
refuge on board his ships to the fugitive population. 
With an immense force he subsequently attacked the 
Tartar detachments on the coast of Fuhkien, and 
gained considerable advantages over them. He then 
proceeded northwards, and even ventured to under- 
take the siege of Nanking. This, however, was a 
venture beyond his power, and while, as it is said, 
his troops were revelHng in anticipation of the assault 
on the city, which they were to have made on the 
following morning, the Manchu leader delivered an 
attack which utterly discomfited Koxinga's host. 
Three thousand men of the besieging army were 
slain, and Koxinga, with the remnants of his fleet 
and army, sailed to the m.ore congenial regions of the 
south. The Manchus have never been good sailors. 
To them the sea is a foreign element, and so long as 
there was an effective Chinese fleet they were always 
subject to disaster on the coast. In other parts of 
the Empire victory followed their standards, and 
Kwei Wang's fortunes reached their lowest ebb. 

We have seen how Wu Sankwei followed the flying 
footsteps of the rebel Li until he ran him to earth, 
and now with the same ruthless tenacity he chased 
Kwei Wang through the Provinces of Kweichow and 
Yunnan, and even over the border into Burma. On 
arriving at the Burmese capital the Imperial fugitive 
had been hospitably received by the King, who, how- 
ever, at the sight of Wu Sankwei's large and threaten- 
ing army, thought it wise to forego the pleasure of 



DEATH OF KWRI WANG 99 

hospitality. He therefore handed his guest over to 
the Chinese general, in whose custody he, either by 




A MANCHURIAN LANDSCAPE. 



his own hands or by those of executioners, met his 

fate. Hitherto the fortunes of the Manchus had been 
L.ofC. 



100 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

guided by the Regent Dorgun, but about this time 
the young Emperor was by an adverse fate deprived 
of his counsel. During a hunting expedition which 
he had undertaken into Manchuria death overtook 
him, much to the grief of the youthful sovereign, who 
granted him an Imperial funeral, and eulogised his 
virtues in an Imperial edict. But while the memory 
of his services were yet green, a charge of intended 
rebellion was brought against him. Inquiries, the 
value of which may fairly be doubted, having proved 
to the satisfaction of the boy Emperor that this 
charge was well founded, the honours which had 
been conferred upon him were cancelled and his 
name consigned to oblivion. It is evidence of the 
supremacy which the Manchus had acquired at this 
time (1664) that two European embassies arrived at 
Peking with the design of opening diplomatic rela- 
tions with Shunchih. Though they came by different 
routes — the Dutchman by sea and the Russians over- 
land through Siberia — the reception which they met 
with was the same, and was not such as to encourage 
others to follow in their footsteps. As a preliminary 
they were told that on entering the presence of the 
Emperor they would be expected to " k'ot'ow." The 
Dutchman yielded, and got very little for his pains. 
After lengthy negotiations and a liberal distribution 
of presents the Imperial answer to his petition was 
couched in these words : " You have asked leave to 
come to trade in my country, but as your country is 
so far distant, and the winds on the east coast so 
boisterous and so dangerous to your ships, if you do 
think fit to send hither I desire it may be but once 



A REBUFF TO RUSSIA lOI 

every eight years, and no more than one hundred 
men in a company, twenty of whom may come up to 
the place where I keep my court." The Russians, as 
a reward for their contumacy, were not even granted 
these doubtful privileges, but were dismissed no richer 
than they came, and returned by Siberia to report 
their failure to the Czar. These were the first Euro- 
pean embassies which reached Peking (1656), and 
their receptions taught lessons which happily were 
not altogether lost upon their successors. While 
affairs were thus settling down in the Empire 
Koxinga was pursuing his piratical course with vary- 
ing success. That he harried the coast is conclusively 
proved from the fact that the Emperor thought it 
necessary to issue an edict commanding the natives 
of the littoral provinces to retire four leagues inland 
— a command which, strange to say, was strictly 
enforced. 

It was while the Empire was in this unsettled state 
that the Emperor Shunchih was gathered to his 
fathers (1661) after a reign of eighteen years. Before 
his death he nominated his second son as heir to 
the throne. No choice could have been happier. 
K'anghsi was in every way qualified to rule. From 
his youth up, as it proved, he was straightforward, 
honest, and of good report, and after a reign of 
sixty-one years, during which time he ruled his 
subjects with firmness and justice, he died regretted 
by all. He was only eight years old when he 
ascended the throne, and his earlier years of sove- 
reignty were guided by the advice of four Regents 
appointed by his father. After the death of Kwei 



I02 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

Wang the most important rebellious force in the 
Empire with which the Regents had to contend was 
that commanded by Koxinga, and they at once took 
steps to crush their dangerous opponent. In 1663 a 
Chinese fleet, in conjunction with some Dutch ships, 
whose co-operation had been secured, attacked the 
pirate in his haunts at Amoy. Victory attended the 
allies, and Koxinga, finding it no longer possible to 
retain his hold on the mainland, took ship to Formosa, 
where he established himself as king, and where he 
subsequently died in a fit of madness. The Empire 
may now be said to have reached a time of peace, 
a formidable rebellion which had broken out in 
Szech'uan having previously collapsed. This move- 
ment furnishes so apt an illustration of the fiendish 
cruelty which too often governs the action of 
Orientals when fighting for a failing cause, that it 
deserves mention. Being anxious to secure the 
support of the learned for his enterprise, PTsi Wang, 
the rebel chief, induced thirty thousand Literati of the 
province to take up their residence at his capital at 
Ch'engtu. On some slight provocation the tyrant 
ordered the slaughter of every one of these Confu- 
cianists, and subsequently massacred six hundred 
thousand of the inhabitants of the city on the bare 
suspicion that they were disaffected towards him. 
But his culminating crime was yet to come. As 
is the case with most rebel armies, his enormous 
forces had been kept together by the prospect of 
the plunder to which he had hitherto been able to 
lead them, and among the spoils taken from the 
conquered districts had been immense numbers of 



A SLAUGHTER OF WOMEN I03 

women and girls, several of whom had been given 
as prizes to each of the soldiers. In the easy times 
of success the existence of these camp followers, 
though burdensome, was readily sanctioned, but in 
the face of danger and difficulty, of rapid move- 
ments, and of fierce attacks, their presence was 
plainly inconsistent with the efficiency of the army. 
Hsi Wang felt therefore that they were to be got 
rid of, and he knew of only one way of accom- 
plishing his object. In pursuance of it he issued 
an edict commanding every soldier to bring his 
women on to the parade ground at a certain hour, 
and then at a given signal the tyrant himself set the 
example which he desired should be followed, by 
slaying his handmaids with his own hands. It is 
said that on that day four hundred thousand women 
were slaughtered. In dealing with such facts it is 
fortunate that we are not bound to accept the figures 
mentioned as being accurate. Orientals delight in 
round numbers, and it should in fairness be remem- 
bered that the accounts we have of these transactions 
come from the pens of Imperialist chroniclers, who 
certainly would not be inclined to understate the 
crimes of their opponents. 

The position of a Regent in an Oriental country 
is one which is always surrounded with difficulties. 
Every act is liable to be misconstrued, and every 
mistake is apt to be visited with undue censure. 
If this is the case when one Regent holds the reins 
of power, it is easy to see that when four co-equal 
potentates reign supreme, there must inevitably be 
abundant opportunities for jealousies and heart 



104 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

burnings. Such was eminently the case at the 
present time, and to such lengths did the conse- 
quent disagreements go, that the Emperor by a 
stroke of his pen dissolved the Regency and assumed 
the government (1667). To no section of the com- 
munity was this change more welcome than to the 
Roman Catholic missionaries and their converts. 
During the reign of Shunchih every consideration 
had been paid them, and high honours had been 
conferred on their most eminent member, Pere 
Schaal, who had even held the lofty and responsible 
post of tutor to the young Emperor. No sooner, 
however, were Shunchih's eyes sealed in death than 
the Regents, who, in the true spirit of Chinese 
conservatism, had cherished a bitter resentment at 
the favour which had been shown to the foreigners 
and their faith, threw Schaal into prison under one of 
those charges which are so easily trumped up against 
unpopular personages in eastern countries, and 
sentenced him to death by LingcEih, or the slow 
and lingering process. Fortunately even the Regents 
were wise enough to abstain from putting this cruel 
sentence into execution, and Schaal was left in prison 
until death released him in the seventy-eighth year 
of his age. 

Unfortunately this consummation was reached 
before K'anghsi began to rule. But no sooner had 
he taken the reins than he did all in his power to 
redress the balance which had of late been so unfairly 
turned against the missionaries. It is curious to see, 
however, how strong the opposition was to any 
extension of privileges to that body. The half- 



k'anghsi's tolerance ro5 

hearted measures of relief accorded to them by 
K'anghsl sufficiently mark the difficulties with 
which he had to contend. He issued an Imperial 
edict granting leave to the missionaries who had 
been driven into hiding by the Regents, to return 
to their churches, but forbade them to proselytise. 
"As we do not restrain the Lamas of Tartary," so 
ran the edict, " or the bonzes of China, from building 
temples and burning incense, we cannot refuse these 
having their own churches, and publicly teaching 
their religion, especially as nothing has been alleged 
against it as contrary to law. Were we not to do 
this we should contradict ourselves. We hold there- 
fore that they may build temples to the Lord of 
Heaven and maintain them wherever they will ; and 
that those who honour them may freely resort to them 
to burn incense and to observe the rites usual to 
Christianity." 

Meanwhile Pere Verbiest, a Dutch priest, had 
succeeded Pere Schaal at Peking. The young 
Emperor, who was greatly interested in philosophy 
and science, and who had found the Father proficient 
in both subjects, appointed him his tutor, and listened 
with eager attention to his discourses on the intricate 
subjects of Christianity and philosophy. It so 
happened that at this time doubts arose as to the 
accuracy of the Calendar issued by the Astronomical 
Board. In this difficulty the Emperor turned to 
Pere Verbiest, who demonstrated to his Majesty's 
complete satisfaction that an egregious mistake had 
been made by the native astronomers. As a reward 
for his knowledge and sagacity the Emperor made 



I06 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

the priest President of the Board, and dismissed the 
native Presidents from their offices, at the same time 
commanding the new President to issue a revised 
Calendar. The disgraced officials, fearful lest their 
ignorance should be made public throughout the 
Empire, begged Verbiest not to expose the mistake 
into which they had fallen. He, however, refused to 
listen to their pleadings, and possibly with a self- 
righteous satisfaction at the consciousness that he 
was right and that they were wrong, refused in 
any way to blink their error. The wisdom of this 
course was open to doubt, and in the persecutions 
that followed it may well be imagined that a recollec- 
tion of this passage of arms may have added virulence 
to the aspersions of the Literati. 

During the campaign against the Ming rebels 
which had ended in consolidating the Imperial power 
it had been deemed wise to confer the rank of Prince 
on the three generals who had contributed most to 
the success of the cause. The leader of these three 
was the redoubtable Wu Sankwei who by virtue of 
his office was practically in possession of the provinces 
of Kweichow and Yunnan. The other two Viceroys 
presided over the destinies of Kwangtung and 
Kwangsi ; and of Fuhkien and Chehkiang. All 
these three were Chinamen, and, therefore, were 
not bound by racial ties to the new dynasty. Their 
careers, also, had not displayed any fixed loyalty to 
any given cause, and K'anghsi felt that it was dangerous 
to leave them in undisputed possession of their vice- 
royalties. Of the three he had reason to dread Wu 
Sankwei the most, both from his character and from 



IVU SANK WEI INVITED TO PEKING 10/ 

the influence which he wielded, and though he held 
Wu's son as a hostage for his father's loyalty, he 
deemed it only prudent to put the views of the veteran 
to the test. It has always been usual for high 
dignitaries to visit the Court at varying intervals, 
and there was nothing unusual, therefore, in the 
summons which K'anghsi issued inviting Wu to 
present himself at the capital. But the younger 
Wu, who was connected by marriage with the Court, 
being aware of the course which the Imperial 
suspicions were taking, despatched a messenger to 
his father warning him not to accept the invita- 
tion. Acting on this hint, Wu pleaded old age and 
begged the Emperor to excuse his undertaking such 
a long journey. This implied refusal confirmed the 
Emperor's suspicions, but being unwilling imme- 
diately to drive so powerful a man into open 
enmity, he commissioned officials to inquire whether 
decrepitude really debarred Wu from presenting 
himself at Peking. Wu received these by no means 
welcome visitors with a show of cordiality, but when 
they broached the real object of their visit and urged 
him to comply with the Emperor's desire, he felt that 
it was time to speak plainly. " Yes, I will come to 
Peking," he said, " but it will be at the head of eighty 
thousand soldiers." 

This declaration made further negotiations un- 
necessary, and the envoys returned to Peking to 
report their want of success. Meanwhile, Wu 
Sankwei raised the standard of rebellion, and pro- 
ceeded to form a separate State of the provinces 
under his control. He had on a former occasion 



I08 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

sacrificed his father to his poHtical leanings, and now 
his action was destined to send his son to the exe- 
cution ground. The historians tell us that the 
younger Wu had embarked in a plot to murder the 
Emperor and his surroundings. This possibly may 
liave been so, for Oriental courts are fit scenes for 
" treasons, stratagems, and spoils," but the reported 
crime so closely synchronises with his father's rebel- 
lion, that there appears to be a likelihood that the 
charge, if ever preferred, was trumped up to justify the 
extreme measures which the Emperor took against him. 
The news of the death of his son added intensity 
to Wu Sankwei's hatred of the usurping dynasty, and 
in 1674 he killed the Governor of Yunnan, and virtu- 
ally conquered that province together with Kwei- 
chow, Szech'uan, and Hunan. Being still willing, 
however, to arrive at a peaceable solution K'anghsi 
once more attempted to open negotiations with him, 
but the veteran was irreconcileable, and so potent 
was his influence that his two fellow princes threw in 
their lot with his, and thus the whole of the west and 
south of China were in arms against the Manchus. 
To add to the complexity of the position an outbreak 
occurred within the walls of Peking, and at the same 
time the Mongol chieftain, Satchar, threatened the 
northern frontier with a hundred thousand men. The 
emergency was one which may well have tried the 
stoutest courage. But K'anghsi was equal to the 
occasion. By the aid of troops drawn from the 
Liaotung peninsula he crushed the Mongol move- 
ment, and brought Satchar with his family as 
prisoners to Peking. Having thus disposed of the 



IMPERIAL BARBARITIES IO9 

difficulty in his rear he marched his armies against 
the southern rebels. Success attended his arms. 
The provinces of Fuhkien and Chehkiang were 
recovered without striking a blow by the submis- 
sion of the Viceroy, and Wu was driven out of 
Hunan and Szech'uan. To inspire his troops with 
zeal K'anghsi proposed to place himself at their head, 
and while preparing to leave Peking for the front the 
welcome news reached him of the death of Wu 
(1678). With the disappearance from the political 
stage of this veteran, the back of the rebellion may 
be said to have been broken. Wu's grandson who 
succeeded to the command, though brave, failed to 
preserve the frontiers committed to him. By the 
relentless and persistent Manchu he was driven from 
city to city, until he reached Yunnan Fu, where he 
made his last stand. The city, however, was taken, 
and to avoid submitting to the tender mercies of the 
Imperialists the rebel chief committed suicide. With 
Oriental barbarity the Manchu leader beheaded the 
lifeless corpse, and sent the head as a trophy to 
Peking ; but even this did not satisfy his cruel 
humour. With an excess of brutality he disinterred 
the body of Wu Sankwei, and so scattered the bones 
over the provinces which had owned his sway in life, 
that no one should be able to say " this is Wu San- 
kwei." The year in which these events took place 
had been a distressful one to China. As if in 
sympathy with the disturbed political conditions an 
earthquake shook the foundations of Peking, and 
destroyed three hundred thousand within the city 
and neighbourhood. 



no THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

Peace, however, having been once more restored 
within the " eighteen provinces " K'anghsi had an 
opportunity of attacking Koxinga's successor who 
held a rebeUious sway in the Pescadores and For- 
mosa. At the head of three hundred ships contain- 
ing twelve thousand men the Manchu commander 
sailed to attack the island fastnesses of the rebels in 
the first-named group. With this imposing force he 
advanced to the attack, but was met by a determined 
resistance on the part of the pirates. The battle 
lasted all day, and at the close the Manchus were 
completely successful. Twelve thousand rebels are 
said to have been slain, and the majority of the 
survivors taking ship fled to Formosa. Thither the 
Manchus followed them, but their ships being of 
considerable draught they were, at first, unable to 
approach the shore. An unusually high spring tide, 
however, carried the vessels over the shallows in pre- 
cisely the same way as that, remembered by the 
rebels, in which Koxinga's ships had been brought 
within striking distance of the shore. The similarity 
of the two incidents deeply impressed the super- 
stitious natives, who, readily accepting the superficial 
belief that the increased depth of water was due 
entirely to the interposition of providence, submitted 
without a struggle to the invaders. Koxinga's son 
was sent to Peking, where the Emperor varied the 
usual practice of decapitation by creating him a 
Duke, and, at the same time, lavished honours on 
the victors in the fray. 

The wide extent of the Chinese Empire, and the 
number of peoples who are actually, or theoretically, 



TARTAR IRRUPTIONS III 

subject to Peking, enforce on the country an almost 
chronic state of war. On the north and west the 
Empire is bounded by mountain ranges which are 
inhabited by hardy and warhke tribes, to whom the 
Empire's difficulty is their opportunity. And thus it 
was not, probably, a surprise to K'anghsi to receive 
news of hostilities on his northern frontier, while yet 
he was crowning with laurels the generals who had 
vanquished Wu Sankwei, and had recovered For- 
mosa. It had always been difficult to trace the 
beginning of the many tribal wars outside the 
northern marches, and Central Asia had been so 
long and completely shrouded from observance that, 
at this time, little was known at Peking of the pro- 
gress of events beyond the Great Wall. The first 
intimation which reached K'anghsi that mischief was 
brewing was the irruption across the frontier of 
bodies of Khalka Tartars into Chinese territory. 
These men brought news that the Eleuths, a 
Kalmuck tribe occupying a territory in the neigh- 
bourhood of Hi, had declared war against their 
countrymen who, as they took pains to remind 
K'anghsi, owned allegiance to China. This was 
practically a declaration of war against the Middle 
Kingdom, but Galdan, the chief of the Eleuths, was 
not unnaturally anxious to enjoy the advantage of 
peace with China while he fought with his Tartar 
neighbours. He therefore sent ambassadors to 
Peking, who reached the capital just at the time 
when Wu Sankwei's rebellion was absorbing 
K'anghsi's attention. So disastrous at this crisis 
appeared to be the state of the Empire that the 



112 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

envoys were induced to suppose and to expect, that, 
as had been the case in many other royal Hnes, the 
Ch'ing Dynasty was tottering to its fall. Galdan 
therefore carried on his invasion of the Khalka 
country free from any dread of reprisals from the 
suzerain State. 

At this juncture a new power appeared on the 
banks of the Amur river. With that steady step 
which is characteristic of the Russians, they had been 
gradually extending their frontier eastward, and had 
erected fortifications and entrenchments at Albazin 
on the upper course of the Amur. Galdan recog- 
nising the superior weapons and organisation of the 
Europeans, offered them an alliance which he was 
quickwitted enough to see would impart strength to 
his ambitious designs against China. Rumours of 
these intrigues having reached Peking, K'anghsi 
despatched envoys to the Khalka country, and sent 
with them the two Jesuit missionaries, Gsrbillon and 
Pereira. These men had won the confidence of the 
Emperor by their straightforward conduct and scien- 
tific knowledge, and had secured his gratitude by, on 
one occasion, curing him of a severe attack of fever 
by the use of quinine. They possessed also the 
unusual qualification of a knowledge of both his 
Mongolian and Russian languages. 

The accounts which these envoys brought back 
made it plain to K'anghsi that if he was to maintain 
his hold over the Khalka country, and check the 
advance of the Russians, who showed a decided 
tendency to encroach on the fertile lands south of 
the Amur river, it would be necessary for him to 



DEFEAT OF THE RUSSIANS IT3 

send a force to overawe the Tartars and to drive the 
liuropean invaders across the frontier. It may well 
be supposed that the Russians felt themselves secure 
from an attack in a region so remote from Peking, 
and doubtless their surprise was great when they 
found a Chinese army advancing against them. 
Though behind entrenchments and in possession of 
superior weapons, they were unable to withstand the 
attack of K'anghsi's hordes. Their fortifications were 
demolished, and those of the garrison who survived 
were taken prisoners and were marched to Peking, 
where a small quarter in the northern part of the city 
was appropriated to their use. The descendants of 
these men, who for the most part married Chinese 
wives and settled down as citizens of the capital, still 
occupy the same streets and houses as their ancestors 
did in the seventeenth century, and even now among 
them a European type of face is sometimes to be 
noticed, though the large mixture of Chinese blood 
which must necessarily run through their veins may 
well have obliterated all traces of their Caucasian 
origin. The ruin which had overtaken Albazin did 
not, however, prevent the Russians from again 
occupying the dismantled forts and entrenchments 
of that town. So long as the country was disturbed 
by war's alarms, Peres Gerbillon and Pereira had had 
no opportunity of opening negotiations, but in 1689 
they succeeded in coming to terms with the repre- 
sentative of the Russian Government, and finally 
signed a treaty at Nerchinsk on the Amur by which 
it was arranged that Russia should be bounded as to 
her ambition by the river northwards, and should 

9 



114 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

cease to disturb the peace of its southern shores. 
This was the first treaty that the Chinese ever con- 
cluded with an European power, and was the pre- 
cursor of the many conventions which have since 
been concluded between the two Empires. 

Though foiled in his endeavour to enlist the help 
of Russia in his ambitious career, Galdan yet felt 
himself strong enough to renew his campaign single- 
handed against the Kalkas. With a certain amount 
of effrontery he complained that the Chinese had 
accepted as subjects the Kalkas who had fled over 
the southern frontier to escape from his troops. As 
the Kalkas were already Chinese subjects the com- 
plaint was preposterous ; but, strange as it may 
seem, it met with the support of the Dalai Lama 
of Tibet, of whom it may be said that if his religious 
instincts were not truer than his political ideas the 
spiritual condition of the people under him must 
have been in a parlous state. Wisely K'anghsi 
refused to listen to this misguided prelate, and 
prepared to take the field against his northern 
enemy. Meanwhile Galdan suffered a defeat which 
was as disastrous as it was unexpected. While yet 
a young man he had, after the by no means un- 
common manner of his countrymen, murdered his 
elder brother, for no other reason than that, as he 
rightly thought, he was a bar to his succession to 
the chieftainship. The son of the murdered man 
had, under the influence of K'anghsi, assumed the 
command of a portion of the Khalka territory, and 
between him and his uncle there was, as may well be 
imagined, a deathless blood ieud. In an engagement 



TARTAR TREACHERY II5 

fought between the forces of the two relatives the 
son of the murdered man partly avenged the assassi- 
nation by inflicting a crushing defeat on his uncle's 
troops. But, though discomfited, Galdan was by 
no means vanquished, and gained respect among 
his compeers by an act which in Western countries 
would be deemed infamous. K'anghsi had sent 
envoys to Galdan in the vain hope that even yet 
further hostilities might be averted. These men 
Galdan arrested, and held as hostages for the 
peaceable action of the Chinese. So soon as the 
news of this outrage reached Peking, K'anghsi 
resigned all thoughts of peace, and marched three 
armies against the recalcitrant Mongol. After an 
arduous march through the dreary wastes which 
separate China proper from the Mongolian pastures 
the Imperial armies faced their enemy at Wulanpu- 
tang. After the manner of his kind, Galdan, seeing 
the immense forces with which he had to contend, 
attempted to avoid the impending evil by opening 
negotiations ; but K'anghsi rating these overtures at 
their proper value, answered him by marching to the 
attack. By a most mistaken strategy Galdan sur- 
rounded his men by a huge lager composed of 
countless camels, and awaited the onslaught. It will 
be remembered that in Wu Sankwei's campaign 
against the Burmese the Burmans made the mistake 
of placing their elephants in the front rank, with the 
result that when tortured by the Manchu arrows the 
huge monsters turned and ran among the ranks of 
their masters, throwing them into hopeless confusion. 
A similar fate overtook Galdan's troops. The fire 



Il6 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

from the Chinese guns so frightened the camels that 
they trampled through the Mongol soldiers, and left 
them an easy prey to their enemies. It often happens 
in Eastern warfare that an incompetent general fails 
to reap the full results of victory by not following up 
his defeated foes, and on this occasion the want of 
warlike energy displayed by the Chinese gave a new 
lease of life to Galdan. Illness had made the return 
of K'anghsi to Peking absolutely necessary, and his 
generals, deprived of his wisdom and energy, instead 
of pursuing the shattered forces of the enemy, 
withdrew their troops, and allowed Galdan to 
reorganise his broken forces. 

For a time political and military matters remained 
in a state of suspended animation. War, however, 
was in the air, and while yet a sort of armed truce 
was existing Galdan committed an act of profligate 
wrong which precipitated action. K'anghsi desiring 
to be in touch with passing events in Central Asia, 
had sent envoys to Galdan's nephew, the Khalka 
chief On their way to the Khalka capital these 
emissaries were attacked, robbed, and murdered by 
Galdan's troops. Such an act in Western countries 
would place the doer beyond the pale of civilisation. 
But in Asia events of the kind are not so uncommon 
as to arouse unusual indignation. K'anghsi, however, 
waxed wrath at the outrage ; but still being unwilling 
to make reconciliation impossible, he wrote the 
offender a letter, in which, with a certain magna- 
nimity, he gave him room for repentance. " I learn 
that, notwithstanding your oaths," he wrote, " you 
and Tsi Wang Rabdan cannot live at peace with 



K'ANGHSfs LETTER OF INDICTMENT 11/ 

one another ; the instant I was informed of your 
disagreements I took steps to remove them. I sent 
one of the officers of my tribunal to be the bearer of 
words of peace, and your people, like mere savages, 
have committed the inhuman act of massacring him. 
. . . What ought I to think of conduct which pro- 
claims you false to both your oath and your allegiance? 
I now finally desire to warn you that unless your 
repentance follows close upon your fault I shall come 
with arms in my hands to exact from you the fullest 
reparation for these outrages." 

But though K'anghsi was placable, Galdan, with 
all the restless combativeness of a tribal leader, threw 
peace to the winds and prepared for war. To 
strengthen his position he sought for alliance among 
the neighbouring Mongol tribes, and even went the 
length of becoming a Mahommedan in the hope that 
by so doing he might the more readily enlist the 
sympathies of the followers of the Prophet. Distinc- 
tive faiths sit lightly on Orientals, and, though in 
earlier life he had visited Lhasa, and had formed a 
close alliance with the Dalai Lama, he now found no 
difficulty in professing to accept the Kuran as his 
guide to Heaven. 

As soon as the news of these intrigues reached 
Peking, K'anghsi set his battalions in array, and 
appointed General Fei Commander-in-chief (1695-96). 
Circumstances had invested this campaign with pecu- 
liar importance, and to infuse enthusiasm into his army 
and officers K'anghsi held a high court ceremony at 
Peking which was intended to be as inspiriting as it 
was impressive. Surrounded by all the gorgeous 



Il8 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS ; 

trappings of the East, and, above all, in the midst 
of a crowd of officers of all ranks from the Commander- 
in-chief down to the youngest subaltern — 

" Aloft in awful state 
The god-like hero sat 
On his Imperial throne." 

So soon as the pageant was complete General Fei 
advanced and knelt before his Sovereign, who, with 
his own hands, presented him with a cup of wine, 
which the warrior drank as a pledge of his loyalty, 
and as an omen of future success. In due accordance 
with their ranks, the other officers partook of a 
similar honour, and from the presence of their 
Emperor marched to the head of their regiments. 
Upwards of thirty thousand men followed Fei's 
banners, and these had scarcely left the capital 
when K'anghsi put into the field two more hosts 
of equal number, of one of which he took the 
command in person. Before leaving his capital he 
presented himself before his God at the Temple of 
Heaven, and there, in the centre of the highest of the 
terraces which beautify those splendid precincts, he 
offered up a propitiatory prayer to Shangti, the 
supreme Deity. " Receive my homage," he prayed, 
"and protect the humblest of your subjects, Sovereign 
Heaven, Supreme Ruler ! With confidence but re- 
spect I invoke your aid in the war that I find myself 
compelled to undertake. You have already showered 
favours upon me. ... I admit in silence and respect 
your benefits. . . . My most ardent desire has ever 
been to see the peoples of my Empire, and even 



k'anghsi before his god 119 

foreign nations, enjoy all the advantages of peace. 
Galdan destroys my dearest hopes ; he sows disorder 
everywhere ; he tramples underfoot your laws, and 
despises the commands of his Sovereign who holds 
your place here on earth ; he is both the most false 
and the most wicked of men. ... I hold from you 
the right to make war upon the wicked. In order to 
fulfil this duty I am about to march at the head of 
my troops. Prostrate before you, I implore your 
support, and I offer up his sacrifice animated with 
the hope of drawing down upon myseF some of your 
most marked favours. But one vow I most resolutely 
formed, and that is to bestow the blessing of peace 
throughout the vast territory over which you have 
placed me." 

The sought-for blessing was granted in full measure. 
As the Chinese armies approached Galdan's lairs he 
retreated before them, possibly in the hope that, like 
Napoleon's army before the retiring Russians, they 
would be reduced to defeat by cold and starvation. 
At last, however, he made up his mind to give battle, 
and victory was still hanging in the balance, when, 
by an ingenious though inhuman artifice, Fei turned 
the scales in his favour. He noticed that on a neigh- 
bouring height a large crowd of apparently non- 
combatants stood watching the fight. Rightly 
assuming that these were the women and children 
of Galdan's soldiers, he opened a heavy fire upon 
them.. The result was exactly that which he had 
anticipated. The Mongols, seeing their wives and 
children mowed down by the Chinese fire, broke 
their ranks and rushed to their protection. With 



120 



THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 



well-directed energy Fei charged into the disordered 
host, and after a short struggle gained a complete 
and crushing victory. Galdan escaped from the field, 
but his career was over, and while yet the Chinese 
troops were preparing to follow in pursuit the news 
was brought in of his death. Towards the memory 
of the arch-traitor K'anghsi showed no consideration. 
He demanded the remains of his foe as well as the 




A STREET SCENE IN PEKING. 



surrender of his son and daughter. With these 
pledges of his victory he returned to Peking. What 
dishonour was placed upon the bones of Galdan we 
are not told, but with rare generosity the Son of 
Heaven gave official rank to the son and an 
honourable marriage to the daughter. As the spoil 
of conquest he divided the territory lately ruled over 
by Galdan between himself and Tsi Wang, giving to 



A DIAMOND JUBILEE 121 

this chieftain all the country to the west of the Altai 
Range, and keeping the eastern districts in his own 
hands. 

The benevolent desire for peace expressed by 
K'anghsi at the Temple of Heaven was however 
denied fulfilment, and the Chinese armies had 
scarcely returned to Peking when Tsi Wang, wax- 
ing fat with conquests, developed all the restless 
proclivities of his late uncle. On the plea of giving 
a safe escort to his daughter, who was betrothed to 
a Tibetan grandee, he marched with six thousand 
men against Lhasa. With little or no opposition he 
presented himself before the walls of that city, and, 
having taken it, delivered it up to the predatory 
instincts of his followers. This raid was an equiva- 
lent to a declaration of war against China, Tibet 
being a dependency of that Empire. For the third 
time, therefore, K'anghsi sent an army into Mongolia, 
and, though the campaign was long protracted, it 
ended in victory to his banners, and in the annihi- 
lation of Tsi Wang's forces. This much-wished-for 
consummation was reached in the year 172 1, when 
K'anghsi celebrated his Diamond Jubilee on the 
completion of the sixtieth year of his reign, and 
formed a fitting climax to the gorgeous pageant with 
which that far-famed occasion was commemorated. 

Not long after this manifestation of popular re- 
joicing, and before the enthusiasm of his subjects 
had died away, the great Emperor who had ruled his 
vast possessions for more than sixty years, became a 
guest on high (1722). His illness was short, lasting 
only thirteen days, but was long enough to enable 



122 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

him to make arrangements for the administration of 
future affairs, and to appoint his fourth son, Yung 
Cheng, to succeed him on the throne. Few emperors 
have ruled the destinies of China as successfully as 
K'anghsi. He loved justice, and aimed at doing 
what appeared right in his eyes. He was learned in 
all the knowledge of his countrymen, and was a 
munificent patron of literature. He was himself an 
author, and his numerous writings both in prose and 
verse filled many portly volumes. Two works which 
were compiled at his instigation would alone be 
sufficient to make his name memorable in the annals 
of Chinese literature. The splendid dictionary of 
the language, which is known as " K'anghsi's Dic- 
tionary," is a monumental work, and was compiled 
at the order of the Emperor by a Commission of 
Scholars especially appointed for the purpose. It 
has ever since been recognised as the standard dic- 
tionary of the language, and in the ordinary editions 
fills thirty-six volumes. The other, which owes its 
initiative to him, is the huge encyclopedia known as 
the " CJiinting fiishti chi cJieng',' which issued from 
the press in five thousand and twenty volumes. 
The subjects included in this publication are divided 
into thirty-two grand categories, with countless sub- 
divisions, each of which is illustrated by quotations 
from works of authority arranged in chronological 
order. So that the student has placed before him in 
due succession the opinions of every native scholar 
of weight on the subject of his study. But K'anghsi 
was also the author of the " Sixteen maxims " which 
form part of the initial studies of every Chinese boy. 



STRICTURES ON STRANGE SECTS 1 23 

These maxims were annotated and enlarged upon by 
his son and successor, Yungcheng, who considered 
himself at liberty, in the case of one maxim at least, 
to give a bias to K'anghsi's words, which probably 
was never intended by their author. " Avoid strange 
sects in order to exalt orthodox doctrines," wrote 
K'anghsi, and among these " strange sects " Yung- 
cheng chose to include Roman Catholicism, and 
further warned his subjects to have no relations with 
the followers of the " Lord of heaven," adding, for 
the information of the people, that the missionaries 
attached to the Court at Peking owed their position 
entirely to their very useful knowledge of mathe- 
matics. 

The support and favour accorded to the mis- 
sionaries during the lifetime of K'anghsi, makes it 
improbable that he would have warned his people 
so pointedly against them, unless, indeed, he may 
have penned the words when vexed and perplexed 
by the unseemly quarrels which broke out in their 
ranks. It will be remembered that after the death 
of Ricci the arrival of Dominican and Franciscan 
missionaries gave rise to acute disputes and dissen- 
sions, the new arrivals considering that the earlier 
Jesuits had carried their principle of being all things 
to all men to an extent which bordered on sacrile«:e. 
This cleavage between the Jesuits on the one hand, 
and the Dominicans and Franciscans on the other, 
was to a great extent national as well as religious, 
the Portuguese representing the Jesuits, and the 
French and Italians their detractors. For some 
years the question between them took no public 



124 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

shape, but in 1645 a reference was made to the 
Propaganda, which was answered by a decree of 
Innocent X. One of the main questions put in this 
reference was " whether, in regard to the frailty of 
the people, it could be tolerated, for the present, that 
Christian magistrates should carry a cross hidden 
under the flowers which were presented at the 
heathen altars, and secretly worship that, while they 
were in outward form and appearance worshipping 
the idol." The answer was a direct negative, as it 
was also to the inquiry whether the presence of 
Christians in the temples of the idols, and their 
attendance at the worship and sacrifices, were to be 
sanctioned. 

Though disappointed the Jesuits were not crushed, 
and at a later date a second reference A^as made to 
the Propaganda, which met with a different response. 
The congregation under Alexander VII. upheld the 
views of the Jesuits on the matter in dispute. They 
drew a distinction between the political and religious 
rites of the people, and included among the former 
the worship of ancestors ; and added " that Chinese 
converts should be permitted to perform the cere- 
monies towards the dead even with the unconverted, 
superstitious objects alone being prohibited ; that 
they may also assist in their worship when they are 
performing superstitious rites, having protested their 
faith, and not being in peril of subversion, and when 
otherwise they could not avoid hatred and enmities." 

The arrival in China of Bishop Maigrot added a 
new element of discord to the already divided bodies 
of missionaries. The bishop was a man with strong 



BISHOP MAIGROT I25 

views, and though, as events proved, no match for 
the Jesuits, he was yet one who could express himself 
with force. In a decree which he issued on the 
questions in dispute, he forbade the use of the ex- 
pressions Tien and Shangti for God, and ordered that 
the Deity should always be spoken of as Tien Chu, or 
" Lord of Heaven," the term universally used among 
Roman Catholics. He condemned the questions 
proposed to Alexander the VHth as not having been 
truthfully set forth, and he prohibited missionaries 
from being present at the festivals or sacrifices con- 
nected with heathen worship. K'anghsi, who still 
showed symptoms of being under the influence of 
the Jesuits, took umbrage at the appearance of this 
declaration, and summoned the Bishop to an audience 
in the wilds of Tartary, whither he had gone on a 
hunting expedition. The Bishop's knowledge of the 
country was slight, and of the language little or 
nothing. These imperfections were eagerly taken 
advantage of by the Emperor, who, after the inter- 
view, thus wrote of his guest. " I have ordered 
Bishop Maigrot to come hither, that I might examine 
him. He knows a little Chinese, but cannot speak 
so as to be understood, he is consequently obliged to 
have an interpreter. Not only does he not under- 
stand the meaning of the books, but is even ignorant 
of the characters. A native who should show such 
ignorance would not dare to speak in public, and if 
he did so would move his hearers to laughter. Not 
understanding the sense of the books, he is not in a 
position to say what they contain, as he professes 
to do." 



126 THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

The inference thus drawn by the Emperor, that 
the Bishop's ignorance of the language rendered him 
incapable of forming a right judgment on the subject 
of the term for God, had considerable force. In the 
Imperial eyes, also, it was presumption on his part to 
offer an opinion on the question, inasmuch as the 
Emperor had traced with his vermilion pencil a 
statement to the effect that Viejt was understood by 
the Chinese to be both the material Heaven and the 
Supreme God. These differences in China were 
reflected at Rome, and in the exercise of his wisdom 
Clement XL appointed a legate to proceed to China 
to settle the differences between the contending 
missionaries. This appointment was a rock of 
offence to K'anghsi, who was annoyed at the idea 
of a visitor being appointed when he, the Emperor, 
was there to superintend the conduct of the Fathers. 
He, however, granted the Legate, Charles Maillard de 
Tournon, an interview, and treated him with marked 
courtesy. During the audience Pereira, who was in 
attendance on the Emperor, showed by a variety of 
approving gestures that the Emperor's address had 
been dictated by himself, and that the entire scene 
had been got up rather as an exhibition of the 
influence of the Father than as a complimentary 
recognition of the Pope or of his representative. 

The Legate soon found out that the friendly 
expressions used by K'anghsi at this interview were 
merely complimentary, and that an occult influence 
was being exercised against him. The Emperor 
had promised him a house at Peking, and had pre- 
pared complimentary gifts for presentation to the 



JESUIT INVESTMENTS 127 

Pope, but on one excuse or another the house was 
never conveyed and the gifts were never sent. The 
rehgious difficulties had, as we have seen, been pro- 
ductive of much mischief and dissension, but a 
further matter was destined to emphasise the quarrel. 
It came to the knowledge of the Legate that the 
Jesuits were in the habit of lending money to the 
natives at a rate of interest which in Europe would 
be considered usurious, but which in China was less 
than the extreme legal rate. The Jesuits considered 
that they were moderate in charging 24 per cent., 
when native money-lenders were entitled to receive 
thirty-six, and from the source thus temperately 
utilised, it was affirmed that the three Jesuit houses 
at the capital derived an annual income of 180,000 
taels. But this profit was " nothing in comparison 
with that which they drew from the commerce in 
manufactures, wines, clocks, and on other industries, 
by which these Fathers amassed enormous treasures, 
which rendered them richer in the Indies than the 
King of Portugal." These statements induced the 
Legate to take a strong step. He issued a solemn 
decree denouncing this practice of the Jesuits as 
being unworthy of Christians, and ordered them to 
suppress and annul all dealings of the kind. 

An incident which occurred immediately on the 
promulgation of this Decree led to a serious suspicion 
being entertained against the Jesuit Fathers. After a 
solitary repast consisting of a stewed pigeon served 
up with broth and bread sauce, the Legate was seized 
with a sudden and dangerous illness, which bore 
some resemblance to the effects of poison. So strained 



128 THE 'RISE OF THE MANCHUS 

were the relations between the two sides in the con- 
troversy, that the friends of the Legate did not hesitate 
to express their beHef that the Fathers had attempted 
to rid themselves of the visitor by violent means. But 
whether this suspicion was well or ill founded, certain 
it is that the quarrel from this time became bitterly 
intensified. It is always easy to find Orientals ready 
and willing to bring charges against unpopular per- 
sonages. The tide was now running against the 
Legate, Bishop Maigrot, and their friends. It was 
natural, therefore, that Chinamen should lay indict- 
ments against them, and that, with considerable 
worldly wisdom, the disregard shown to the decision 
of the Emperor with reference to the term for God, 
should be placed in the fore-front of the indictment. 
For this misdemeanour Bishop Maigrot and his allies 
were summoned to Peking, and after the form of a 
trial judgment was pronounced against them by the 
Emperor in person. The Bishop and others were 
sentenced to be exiled from the Empire as turbulent 
and disorderly men. No European was to be allowed 
to remain in China unless he had letters patent from 
his Imperial Majesty, and all coming after that date 
were to present themselves at Peking and to apply for 
the said letters. 

The Legate felt now that nothing he could say or 
do would mitigate either the wrath of the Emperor, 
or the enmity of the Jesuits. He therefore felt moved 
to issue a decree enjoining all the missionaries who 
should present themselves at Peking " to give a dis- 
tinct negative on all the questions which formed the 
Imperial test, to abjure all the rights and observances 



JESUIT VIRTUES 1 29 

which the Chinese law enjoined, . . . and to declare 
the incompatibility of all these doctrines and practices 
with the Christian law." Irritated by this opposition 
to his will and decisions, K'anghsi sent two Jesuits 
to Rome to represent to the Pope the unfortunate 
position to which the quarrels of the missionaries 
had reduced the affairs of the mission. Meanwhile, 
he banished the Legate to Macao, there to await the 
return of the envoys. On arriving at his destination 
De Tournon was virtually put under arrest. His 
house was surrounded by a guard of soldiers, who 
allowed no one to pass except those who carried the 
authorisation of the Portuguese Governor. Even food 
was admitted with difficulty, and his condition was 
aggravated by mental anxiety as to the result of the 
Emperor's reference to Rome. Under this cruel per- 
secution, his health broke down, and in 1710 death 
released him from the ill-will of his enemies. That 
the Jesuits conferred great advantages on the Chinese 
it cannot be denied. As engineers, architects, and 
surveyors they did much useful work, and by the 
books which they translated, they opened a door for the 
admittance of Western learning into the schools of the 
country. Gerbillon and Bouvet translated Euclid and 
other mathematical works, Thomas taught the people 
algebra, Brocart instructed them in the arts, and 
Pereira in music. Men learned in all the knowledge 
of the West gave up home and country for the good 
of the people ; while scientists of the first rank 
thought it not degrading to mend clocks and make 
musical boxes for the Emperor and his mandarins. 
But to the cause of religion the dissensions which 

10 



130 



THE RISE OF THE MANCHUS 



they fomented did infinite harm, and exposed the 
Fathers to the taunt of K'anghsi, that instead of 
propagating the faith in China, they were ruining 
it. 




IV 

THE REIGNS OF YUNGCHENG AND CH'IENLUNG 

The son to whom the Imperial purple had des- 
cended was the fourth among K'anghsi's numerous 
progeny. He was a man of fine bearing and good 
abilities. As his father said of him, " Yungcheng is a 
man of rare and precious character," and, with per- 
haps pardonable pride, he added, " he has a great 
resemblance to myself" The new Emperor was 
forty-four years of age when he ascended the throne, 
and his first care was to remove beyond the reach of 
temptation those of his brothers whom he considered 
to be politically dangerous. The fourteenth prince, 
who at this time held a command in Central Asia, 
was first attacked, as being the most prominent 
possible aspirant to the Throne. He was therefore 
ordered to Peking, where, with his son, he was im- 
prisoned in the garden of " Perpetual Spring." On 
other princes various kinds of repression were exercised, 
and one was banished to Hsining on the western fron- 
tier, where he, together with his brothers, embraced 
Christianity. The conversion of these banished 
members of his family added fuel to Yungcheng's 



132 THE REIGNS OF YUNGCHENG AND CH' lENTMNG 

wrath against them, and resulted in a sentence of 
perpetual banishment on all members of that section 
of the Imperial clan. 

The new Emperor's attitude towards Christianity 
chimed in so naturally with the feelings of the Literati 
that it was plain that the new faith had fallen on evil 
days. A largely and influentially signed memorial 
was presented to the Emperor, calling upon him to 
banish all foreign priests from the Empire, and to 
permit the conversion of their churches to other and 
" better " uses. In accordance with the usual practice 
this memorial was referred to the Board of Rites, who 
recommended that all missionaries except those in 
the service of the Emperor, should be sent to Macao, 
and should be forbidden, on pain of death, to make 
any attempt to proselytise. As a result of the 
measures thus recommended and approved, upwards 
of three hundred churches were destroyed, and over 
three hundred thousand converts were left spiritual 
orphans. 

The political horizon meanwhile was no clearer 
than the religious one. The Mongols, who had kept 
K'anghsi in a perpetual state of warfare, again gave 
evidence of their turbulent disposition, and a formid- 
able rebellion broke out in the district of Chinghai. 
The duty of suppressing this revolt was entrusted to 
General Nien, who so well played his part that the 
rebels were severely punished and offered their sub- 
mission, pleading with every appearance of sincerity 
to be allowed once more to live under the benign rule 
of the Emperor. For this service Nien was made a 
Duke, and was feted by Yungcheng on his return to 



TOO POTENT A SATRAP 1 33 

Peking. On the occasion of this feast, Nien's officers 
were entertained in the outer courtyard of the Palace, 
while he alone was admitted into the Imperial 
presence. Intoxicated by their success his officers, 
in the enjoyment of the feast, so far forgot their 
respect for their surroundings as to become riotous in 
their cups. The Emperor repeatedly sent out to 
enjoin silence, and, on his orders being disregarded, 
his guest, jealous of the credit of his men, blew the 
whistle with which he had been accustomed to guide 
his troops to victory on the fields of battle. The 
effect was instantaneous. The riot ceased as by 
magic, and not a voice was heard. Yungcheng was 
greatly alarmed at this evidence of the influence which 
Nien had acquired over his staff, and seeing that 
where he was impotent Nien was all powerful, he 
felt that the existence of so potent a leader might 
constitute a danger to the State. It is possible, also, 
that the consciousness of his might may have made 
Nien self-asserting in the presence of his sovereign. 
At all events the decree went forth that he was to be 
crushed ; and instantly memorials were presented to 
the Throne accusing the successful general of not 
having even been in Chinghai, the reported scene of 
his triumphs, but of having amused himself at a safe 
distance from the field, where his soldiers were facing 
the enemy. It was further roundly asserted that he 
had adopted the emblems and insignia of royalty ; 
that he had worn robes which none other than the 
Emperor should wear ; and that he had ordered the 
streets of towns and cities through which he had 
passed to be cleared before him. Bribery and corrup- 



134 I^HE REIGNS OF YUNGCHENG AND CH lENLUNG 

tion on a gigantic scale were also laid to his charge, 
and the man who was yesterday an all-powerful 
general, was next day cast into prison, and after a 
brief trial was sentenced to be sliced to pieces. 
Humanity, however, induced the Emperor to mitigate 
this barbarous sentence, and the fallen victim was 
allowed by Imperial clemency to strangle himself in 
his prison cell. 

All this time the tide had been flowing steadily 
against the Christians, and even the arrival of foreign 
embassies, instead of giving them a much needed 
support, gained for them nothing but disaster. In 
1727 Count Sava Vladislavitche arrived at Peking at 
the head of a mission from the Czar, and was espe- 
cially deputed to arrange with the Chinese Court a 
revision of the treaty of Nerchinsk. Two events 
made this mission noticeable. One was the fact that 
it served to establish a permanent Russian footing in 
Peking in the persons, firstly of a number of youths 
who were destined by their Imperial master for the 
study of Chinese ; and secondly, of persons of 
authority over the students on whom were conferred 
certain plenipotentiary powers, which enabled them 
when occasion required to act as diplomatic agents 
at the Chinese capital. The other was an incident 
which occurred when Count Sava presented his cre- 
dentials. Up to this time all foreigners to whom 
Imperial audiences had been granted, had been 
bidden to deposit their credentials on a table placed 
in front of the Emperor. Deeming this form to be 
derogatory. Count Sava overlooked the table and 
placed the documents in the hands of his Majesty. 



A PORTUGUESE ENVOY 1 35 

A little later in the course of the same year a Portu- 
guese Mission arrived at Peking and Don Metello 
Souza y Menzes, the Envoy, having heard of the 
action of his Russian colleague, and desiring to 
emulate it, informed the Court officials that it was 
unnecessary to place a table in front of his Majesty 
as he intended to hand his credentials to him in 
propia persona. At this avowal the Court dignitaries 
were much disturbed, and accused the Jesuits, who 
had interpreted for Count Sava, of having prompted 
the Portuguese to follow his example. The Em- 
peror, however, took a more reasonable view of the 
question, and gave Don Metello Souza permission to 
follow the course which he proposed. 

In the difficulties which these and other circum- 
stances had brought upon them, the Jesuits deemed 
it wise to ask leave to appear by deputation before 
the Emperor. Their request was granted, but with- 
out listening to their representations His Majesty 
addressed them in a speech especially prepared for 
the occasion, and which at least displayed an intimate 
knowledge of the missionaries and their doings. 
" The late Emperor my father," he said, " after having 
instructed me during forty years, chose me ... to 
succeed him on the throne. I make it one of my 
first objects to imitate him, and to depart in nothing 
from his manner of government. . . . You tell me 
that your law is not a false one. I believe you ; if I 
thought that it was false what would prevent me 
from destroying your churches and from driving you 
out of the country ? . . . But what would you say if 
I were to send a troop of bonzes and lamas into your 



136 THE REIGNS OF YUNGCHENG AND CH'iENLUNG 

country in order to preach their doctrines ? How 
would you receive them ? . . . You wish that all the 
Chinese should become Christians, and indeed your 
creed commands it. I am well aware of this, but in 
that event what would become of us? Should we 
not soon be merely the subjects of your kings ? The 
converts you have made already recognise nobody 
but you, and in a time of trouble they would listen to 
no other voice but yours. ... I permit you to reside 
here, and at Canton, so long as you give no cause for 
complaint ; but if any should arise, I will not allow 
you to remain here or at Canton. I will have none 
of you in the provinces. The Emperor my father 
suffered much in reputation among the Literati by 
the condescension with which he allowed you to 
establish yourselves. . . . Do not imagine, in con- 
clusion, that I have nothing against you, or on the 
other hand that I wish to oppress you. . . . My sole 
care is to govern the Empire well." 

It will be observed that in this speech the Emperor 
dwelt especially on those points which have ever 
since formed the bones of contention between the 
missionaries and the ruling powers in China. It is 
beyond question that the missionaries, in their 
righteous zeal, have often unduly interfered on behalf 
of their converts in the native courts. This applies 
to both Roman Catholics and Protestants, though it 
must be confessed that the Roman Catholic Fathers 
have tried to arrogate to themselves administrative 
powers in a more open and palpable way than their 
Protestant brethren have ever attempted. 

There is a natural disposition in men who are 



IMPERIAL DISASTERS 1 37 

persecuted for their religion's sake to regard any mis- 
fortunes which happen to overtake their persecutors 
as being specially designed by Heaven to avenge 
their wrongs. Deprived of their political privileges, 
and of the Court favour in which they had so long 
basked, the Jesuits found some consolation in the 
indulgence of this weakness of humanity. And 
truth to tell they had many occasions for the gratifi- 
cation of this consoling reflection. Pestilence, floods, 
and earthquakes, dogged the steps of the repressive 
Emperor. Death was rife within the Palace, whole 
districts in the northern portion of the Empire were 
flooded by the bursting of the banks of " China's 
Sorrow," the Yellow River, and, as if to emphasise 
the special iniquity of the Imperial Court, Peking 
was shaken to its very foundations by an earthquake 
(1730), which is said to have destroyed upwards 
of a hundred thousand people, while Providence 
which seems to have been guided by the same in- 
stinct which directed the allies when they destroyed 
the Palace of Yuan-ming-yuan in i860, caused the 
earthquake to inflict overwhelming havoc on the 
same Imperial buildings. About the same time 
riots broke out at Canton, and the whole Empire 
appeared to be tottering on the verge of a catas- 
trophe. 

In China, as in England, there has always been a 
party who have advocated a policy of withdraw- 
ing from conquests beyond the national frontier. 
K'anghsi and later again Ch'ienlung with truer 
insight had seen that the only way of establishing 
peace on the Mongolian frontier was to overawe that 



138 THE REIGNS OF YUNGCHENG AND CH^IENLUNG 

indestructible element of disloyalty and violence 
which had always to be reckoned with when Mon- 
gols were concerned. Yungcheng however failed to 
realise this, and accepting the advice of his coun- 
cillors withdrew his army from beyond the northern 
frontier. Happily for the Empire but a short time 
was allowed for the ill effects of this experiment to 
develop themselves, for on the 7th of October, 1735, 
the stroke of fate fell upon the Emperor. Early in 
the day he had granted the usual audiences, and was 
almost immediately afterwards seized with a sudden 
illness which ended his career on the same evening. 
Yungcheng was not a popular Sovereign, although 
he possessed that quality which is more highly 
esteemed than any other by the Chinese, the love of 
literature. He was a voluminous writer^ but it is to 
be regretted that throughout all his works there is 
noticeable a strong anti-foreign feeling, which is 
happily wanting in the writings of both his prede- 
cessor and successor. H^is death was so sudden that 
he was unable to nominate his heir, and, as is usual 
in such cases, his eldest son, who adopted the title of 
Ch'ienlung, ascended the throne. 




THE REIGN OF CH'IENLUNG 

Ch'ienlung succeeded his father at the age of 
twenty-five, and with an engaging modesty which is 
unusual in the case of " Sons of Heaven," he ap- 
pointed four Regents to guide and direct his faltering 
steps in the administration of the Empire. His first 
exercise of Imperial power was in the direction of 
that quality which blesses those who give and those 
who take. He released the brothers of his late 
father from the confinement to which Yungcheng in 
his jealous fear had consigned them, and opened the i 
prison doors to many casual offenders. The founder 
of the dynasty had divided the members of his 
family into two branches, distinguished by the colour 
of their girdles or belts. To himself and his direct 
heirs he reserved the use of the yellow girdle, while 
the collateral branches were entitled only to wear one 
of a red colour. The princes who had fallen under the /\ 
displeasure of Yungcheng had been deprived at their 
fall of their right to either of these distinctions, but 
the restoration to favour accorded them by Ch'ienlung 
restored to them the privilege of again wearing the 
girdle of their great ancestor. 



140 THE REIGN OF CH lENLUNG 

The missionaries were not so fortunate as these 
scions of the Imperial race, since, though Ch'ienlung 
at that time showed no personal animus against 
them, the Regents to a man were their bitter oppo- 
nents. At the instigation of these potentates an 
edict was issued forbidding the missionaries to propa- 
gate their faith, and directing them to prosecute with 
all humbleness the mechanical callings in which they 
had shown themselves proficient. The province of 
Fuhkien has always been a troublesome one so far as 
foreigners are concerned. Some of the greatest out- 
rages that the Jesuits had to submit to occurred in this 
province, and a long series of enormities has since 
been perpetrated within the district ending in the last 
wholesale murder of English missionaries in 1895. 
In 1746 persecutions of a particularly savage nature 
broke out in Fuhkien. Several Spanish missionaries 
were imprisoned and tortured, while those who 
attempted to shield them from their enemies were 
strangled in spite of the intercession of the Jesuits 
at Peking. The unhappy prisoners were only 
released from their miseries by the sword of the 
executioner. 

Meanwhile a rebellion broke out in South-western 
China and spread to the provinces of Hunan and 
Kwangsi. As has so often happened in Chinese 
campaigns, the generals who had been entrusted 
with the suppression of this revolt had so mismanaged 
matters that the Imperial troops could make no head- 
way agamst the rebels. The Chinese have a rough- 
and-ready way of dealing with men who either 
from their own faults, or by some mischance, are 



141 

unlucky enough to meet with disaster. A short shrift 
and a sharp sword, unless the prisoner should happen 
to be a persona grata, when a silken cord is sent to 
him, is commonly their fate. In this case such a lot 
was meted out to the unsuccessful leaders, and a certain 
General Chang Kwang was appointed in their place. 
The new general justified his appointment. In a 
short time he subjugated the rebels and pacified the 
disturbed districts. If we are to believe the native 
historians we must accept the facts that he slaughtered 
in the field eighteen thousand of the enemy, and 
sent to execution almost as many prisoners. Shortly 
afterwards an insurrection broke out in the province 
of Szech'uan, and Chang Kwang again took the field. 
But success no longer waited on his footsteps. He 
was surrounded by the enemy's spies, so that the 
words which he spake in his bedchamber were told 
to the chiefs of the rebels. In this way all his plans 
were forestalled, and to him was decreed a like fate 
to that which had overtaken the generals whom he 
had superseded. His successor, General Fu was 
more successful, and recovered the revolted province 
to his master's rule. The tender mercies of Chinese 
victors are almost invariably cruel, and Ch'ienlung 
was in no melting mood when the captured rebel 
chief and his family were brought before him. Fol- 
lowing the traditional usage adopted towards har- 
dened rebels, he passed sentence of Lmg Chih upon 
them all, with the exception of one little girl who was 
tranferred to the palace. 

For the first ten years of Ch'ienlung's reign the 
chieftain Tsening had ruled over the Mongols in 



142 THE REIGN OF CH lENLUNG 

peace and quiet. His death however in 1745 let 
loose all the elements of violence which he had 
hitherto been able to hold in check. After some dis- 
turbance and many acts of violence, one of the sons 
of the late chieftain, Dardsha by name, assumed the 
reins of power, but his supremacy was not long left 
undisputed. A restless relative named Davatsi, with 
an ally as truculent as himself in the person of 
Amursana, a neighbouring chief, took the field 
against him. The fortunes of war are always uncer- 
tain, and in border warfare they can seldom be 
counted on with surety. In this instance success 
passed now to one side, and .now to the other, with 
perplexing fickleness. To follow the fortunes of each 
army would be as difficult as it would be unprofitable, 
but in the end Dardsha was defeated and slain, 
leaving to the allies the possession of his territory. 
" When thieves fall out honest men come to their 
dues," and in this case the quarrel which sprung up 
between the two allies resulted eventually in Ch'ien- 
lung recovering the possessions which his father had 
so weakly receded from. The war which raged 
between the two usurpers ended in the defeat of 
Amursana, who fled to Peking desiring to enlist the 
sympathies of Ch'ienlung on his behalf The fugitive 
was received with honour and an army was sent to 
chastise Davatsi. At the conclusion of the campaign 
Amursana was left in the recovered territory as the 
representative of Ch'ienlung, but with the consistent 
faithlessness of a Mongol, he no sooner found himself 
in the possession of an inch of power than he took 
an ell. 



A MONGOL CAMPAIGN 1 43 

The news of his unauthorised assumption of 
monarchical rights having reached Ch'ienlung's ears, 
the deputy was ordered to Peking to answer for his 
conduct. His reply was in keeping with his character. 
He put to the sword the small Chinese garrison left 
with him, and prepared for war. Nor had he long to 
wait. Ch'ienlung at once mustered his battalions 
and issued a manifesto to the Empire explaining the 
call to arms. In this document he said with pardon- 
able pride, " My Empire is larger than any in the 
world ; it is more populous ; it is richer. My coffers 
overflow with silver, and my granaries are full of all 
kinds of provisions." After this exordium he ex- 
plained the cause of the quarrel, and justified to his 
entire satisfaction the course which he was about to 
take. For Amursana's treachery he had no words of 
condemnation strong enough, and as for the arch- 
traitor himself he was to be regarded " as a wolf" 
which flies at the approach of an enemy and has to 
be hunted down as vermin. Strict orders were given 
that the rebel was to be brought to Peking dead or 
alive, and Generals Chao Huei and Fu were com- 
missioned to lead their troops to the attack. Ch'ien- 
lung's description of the rebel's tactics was true to 
the letter. Amursana instinctively avoided general 
engagements, and, when worsted in skirmishes, rode 
off with as many of his men as could follow him to 
fresh woods and pastures new. General Fu who was 
specially deputed to follow on his tracks, hunted him 
down with ceaseless pertinacity. Eventually, deserted 
by his followers, and discredited as a chieftain, Amur- 
sana fled for refuge to Russian territory, and implored 



144 THE REIGN OF CH lENLUNG 

the protection of the Czar. Here he was safe from 
his human pursuers, but unconsciously he had walked 
into the jaws of death. A violent epidemic of small- 
pox was desolating the country at the time, and to 
that dreadful disease he speedily fell a victim. On 
receiving the news of his death General Fu demanded 
his body, that Ch'ienlung might have the gratification 
of gazing on the remains of his adversary. To this 
the Russians very naturally declined to accede, but 
invited Fu to send messengers to identify the features 
of the rebel. 

The brilliant success which had attended the 
Chinese generals left them dissatisfied so long as 
Eastern Turkistan remained as a possible hotbed of 
discontent on their western frontier. Chao, therefore, 
determined to move against Kashgar and Yarkand, 
and in the first instance despatched a certain General 
Ma at the head of the invading force. Ma blun- 
dered in the execution of his task, and met with 
more than one serious reverse. As we have seen, 
there is only one rule in China for the treatment 
of unsuccessful generals. In this case it was not 
departed from, and Ma being beheaded, Chao took 
the matter into his own hands. The impetus 
given to the campaign by his skill and energy was 
such that before long he was able to report to his 
sovereign the capture of both the objects of his 
attack. The prestige thus acquired by the Chinese 
arms so impressed the ruler of Khokand that he 
immediately made his submission to the " Son of 
Heaven," an example which was folowed by several 
of the neighbouring chiefs. As the victors entered 



TRIUMPHANT GENERALS 1 45 

the city of Kashgar the inhabitants, as we learn by a 
letter from General Chao to Ch'ienlung (1759), sur- 
rendered with every demonstration of joy. They 
lavished refreshments on the troops, and covered the 
generals with honour. As the procession advanced 
the people threw themselves on their knees and cried 
aloud, " Long live the great Emperor of China! " 

Having established some form of administration in 
the conquered provinces, Chao and Fu returned to 
Peking to receive the rewards of their services. As 
they approached the capital Ch'ienlung went out half 
a day's journey to meet them, and graciously placed 
palaces within the city at their disposal. Chao was 
raised to the highest rank of nobility, and Fu to that 
of the next grade. Chao who was already advanced 
in years remained at Peking until his death, resting 
on his laurels, and eventually died in the odour of 
Court favour. It is said that after his decease the 
Emperor visited him and in support of a strange 
fiction directed that the dead man should be seated 
in a chair as though still alive. " I command you to 
remain as you are," said the monarch. " I come to 
see you for the purpose of exhorting you to leave 
nothing undone towards the re-establishment of your 
health. A man like you is still necessary to the 
Empire." 

But though war's alarms were frequent during the 
reign of Ch'ienlung peaceful celebrations were mingled 
with the echoes of distant strife. Nearer home the 
prosperity of the country advanced by leaps and 
by bounds, and the favour of Heaven was reflected 
in the well-being of the Imperial family. An inte- 

II 



146 THE REIGN OF CH' J EN LUNG 

resting ceremony took place in the year 1752 when 
the Dowager Empress attained her sixtieth year. 
The whole route from Yuan-ming-yuan, some seven 
miles from Peking, to the Imperial Palace within the 
city walls, was made one long festive pageant, while the 
sides of the road were lined with extempore pavilions 
and theatres, where musicians and actors did their 
utmost to add harmony and amusement to the scene. 
It had been originally intended that the Imperial 
cortege should have been carried in barges along the 
course of the river to the city walls, and though the 
season was winter when in the ordinary course every- 
thing is hard bound with frost, every effort was made 
to keep the river open. But the attempt failed and 
sleighs were substituted. Within the city walls the 
decorations were even more elaborate than by the 
highways. Artificial mountains with Buddhist tem- 
ples and monasteries dotted on their sides, arcades 
and restaurants bordered the streets, while for the 
amusement of the Imperial party children dressed as 
monkeys climbed artificial trees and gathered with a 
variety of grimace every kind of artificial fruit. At 
other places gigantic pears and apples opened at 
intervals displaying children in their hollow interiors. 
Never was there a more gorgeous scene, but it was 
robbed of more than half its value and significance 
by the law which obliges, on such occasions, the 
inhabitants of the neighbourhood to remain indoors 
with closed shutters to prevent them gazing on the 
Dragon countenance. Like Frederick the Great who 
was wont to form the solitary spectator of theatrical 
performances in the Royal Theatre in Berlin, the 




A CHINESE HARROW RIDE. 



148 THE REIGN OF CH'iENLUNG 

Emperors of China are accustomed to traverse the 
streets of their capital unseen by those who have 
prepared for their dehght the decorations of the 
streets and buildings. 

As interludes between the higher duties of State, 
the artistic labours of the Jesuits, Castiglione and 
Attiret, formed an endless source of interest and 
amusement to the Emperor, and he was even induced 
by the excellence of their painting to honour Attiret 
by sitting for his portrait. So delighted was he with 
the result that he was minded to confer on the artist 
the high distinction of a mandarin's button. This 
honour, however, Attiret declined with many expres- 
sions of gratitude, but he and others continued to 
devote themselves to amusing and astonishing the 
Emperor by all kinds of mechanical contrivances 
without reward or recompense. In the construction 
of one piece of mechanism they surpassed themselves. 
With much elaborate and ornate detail they con- 
structed a clock representing a courtyard, from the 
pavilion in which, at the stroke of the hour, the figure 
of a mandarin advanced carrying a banner bearing 
the words, " Long live the Emperor ! " As the auto- 
maton bowed low, four attendants appeared who, 
with short batons, beat out a chime representing the 
particular time of the day. The Chinese have always 
had a taste for this kind of mechanical contrivance, 
and when the Allies took possession of the Summer 
Palace in i860 a number of clocks of a construc- 
tion similar to that just described were found among 
the Imperial treasures. 

At this time Ch'ienlung may be said to have 



EMIGRATION OF TOURGOTS 1 49 

reached the zenith of his power, and to have extended 
his fame throughout the length and breadth of Asia. 
A notable instance of the confidence which was 
reposed in his rule is afforded by one of the strangest 
migrations which even the East with its manifold 
caprices has ever witnessed. While the tribes on the 
Mongol frontier had been in a state of ferment the 
Tourgots, under the leadership of their chief Ayuka, 
fled from the ever-recurring turmoil across the 
Steppes of the Kirghez into Russian territory. At 
first their sudden incursion caused the Governor of 
Orenburg some alarm, but on becoming better 
informed as to its cause and object, he placed at the 
disposal of the wanderers a fertile territory lying 
between the Volga and the Yaik. Here they 
remained, pursuing their avocations for half a 
century, not without some provocation from their 
new government, but in the enjoyment of a tran- 
quillity which, compared with their former harassed 
existence, was as a haven of rest. It is true that the 
Russian drill sergeants decimated their young men 
for the service of the Czar, and that taxes were levied 
upon them such as in their more primitive state of 
society had been entirely unknown. But these were 
grievances to which, so long as their former habitat 
remained the scene of constant strife, they were 
content to submit. After the defeat and death of 
Amursana, however, and the complete pacification of 
the districts over which he had been in the habit of 
raiding, the Tourgots turned their eyes towards the 
lands where they had originally dwelt, and desired to 
offer their submission to the " Son of Heaven," who 



150 THE REIGN OF CH lENLUNG 

had been instrumental in producing order out of 
chaos. Having satisfied themselves that their re- 
appearance within the Chinese frontier would be 
welcomed as a return to their fold, they in all secrecy 
made preparation for their return march across the 
dreary deserts of Central Asia. On one of the first 
days of January, in the year 1 7/ 1, the Tourgot men, 
women, and children, to the number of 600,000, started 
on their ill-starred journey in the direction of their 
ancient home. 

The choice of winter for this great adventure was 
directed by the fact that their settlements were 
situated on both sides of the river Volga, and that it 
was thus necessary to wait until a frozen surface 
should afford a means by which the western portion 
might at any moment join their confreres on the 
eastern shore. Absolute secrecy was observed by 
the Khan and his colleagues as to their intentions, 
and the ignorance of the Russian Government on the 
point was preserved and heightened by the apparent 
zeal with which the Tourgots offered themselves for 
military service under the banners of the Czaritza in 
the war in which the Empire was engaged against 
the Turk. It was proposed by the Khan and his 
confederates that on a signal being given, the settlers 
should set fire to their dwellings and crops, and, if 
possible, include in the conflagration the neighbouring 
Russian cities and villages. 

When the momentous day arrived, and the signal 
was given, the western settlers, alarmed by the 
presence of Russian troopers, who were, by a strange 
accident, in their neighbourhood, refused to move, 



iSi 

and by this coincidence not only were the Russian 
riverine towns saved from destruction, but the 
amount of misery entailed by the march was lessened 
by one-half. As one person, the men, women, and 
children dwelling on the eastern bank, moved east- 
ward at the bidding of the Khan. The first stage of 
three hundred miles was covered in seven days with 
the aid of horses and camels. But already the 
Cossacks were following at the heels of the fugitives, 
and one division of the huge crowd of wanderers was 
cut to pieces by these merciless pursuers. Harassed 
by their enemies and tortured by famine, thirst, and 
disease, the Tourgots, in spite of every obstacle, 
pushed on towards their goal. For eight months 
they marched through the steppes and deserts of 
Asia, and the small remnant were rejoiced at the end 
of that time to re-enter the Chinese frontier on the 
shores of the Lake of Tengis. To this point Ch'ienlung 
had despatched a force of cavalry to receive the 
wanderers, of whose approach he had been apprised. 
One morning the Celestial troopers " reached the 
summit of a road which led through a cradle-like 
dip in the mountains right down upon the margin 
of the lake. From this pass elevated about two 
thousand feet above the level of the water, they 
continued to descend, by a very winding and difficult 
road, for an hour and a half; and during the whole 
of this descent they were compelled to be inactive 
spectators of the fiendish spectacle below. The 
Kalmucks (Tourgots) reduced by this time from 
about six hundred thousand souls to two hundred 
thousand, and after enduring the miseries we have 



152 

previously described — outrageous heat, famine, and 
the destroying scimitar of the Kirghizes and the 
Bashkirs — had for the last ten days been traversing 
a hideous desert, where no vestiges were seen of 
vegetation, and no drop of water could be found. 
Camels and men were already so overladen that it 
was a mere Impossibility that they should carry a 
tolerable sufficiency for the passage of this frightful 
wilderness. On the eighth day, the wretched daily 
allowance, which had been continually diminishing, 
failed entirely ; and thus, for two days of Insupport- 
able fatigue, the horrors of thirst had been carried to 
the fiercest extremity. Upon this last morning, at 
the sight of the hills and the forest scenery, which 
announced to those who acted as guides the neigh- 
bourhood of the Lake of Tengis, all the people 
rushed along with maddening eagerness to the 
anticipated solace. The day grew hotter and hotter, 
the people more and more exhausted; and gradually, 
in the general rush forwards to the lake, all discipline 
and command were lost — all attempts to preserve a 
rearguard were neglected. The wild Bashkirs rode In 
amongst the encumbered people, and slaughtered them 
wholesale, and almost without resistance. Screams 
and tumultous shouts proclaimed the progress of the 
massacre ; but none heeded, none halted ; all alike 
pauper or noble, continued to rush with maniacal 
haste to the waters — all with faces blackened with 
the heat preying upon the liver, and with tongue 
drooping from the mouth. The cruel Bashkir was 
affected by the same misery, and manifested the same 
symptoms of his misery, as the wretched Kalmuck. 



*^ THE FLIGHT OF A TARTAR TRIBE 1 53 

The murderer was oftentimes in the same frantic 
misery as his murdered victim. Many, indeed (an 
ordinary effect of thirst) in both nations, had become 
lunatic ; and in this state, whilst mere multitude 
and condensation of bodies alone opposed any check 
to the destroying scimitar and the trampling hoof," 
the lake was reached ; and to that the whole vast body 
of enemies rushed, and together continued to rush, 
forgetful of all things at that moment but of one 
almighty instinct. This absorption of the thoughts 
in one maddening appetite lasted for a single minute ; 
but in the next arose the final scene of parting 
vengeance. Far and wide the waters of the solitary 
lake were instantly dyed red with blood and gore. 
Here rode a party of savage Bashkirs, hewing off 
heads as fast as the swaths fall before the mower's 
scythe ; there stood unarmed Kalmucks in a death- 
grapple with their detested foes, both up to the 
middle in water, and oftentimes both sinking together 
below the surface, from weakness or from struggles, 
and perishing in each other's arms. Did the Bashkirs 
at any point collect in a cluster for the sake of giving 
impetus to the assault, thither were the camels driven 
in fiercely by those who rode them, generally women 
and boys ; and even these quiet creatures were forced 
into a share in this carnival of murder by trampling 
down as many as they could strike prostrate with the 
lash of their forelegs. Every moment the water 
grew more polluted ; and yet every moment fresh 
myriads came up to the lake and rushed in, not able 
to resist their frantic thirst, and swallowing large 
draughts of water, visibly contaminated with the 



154 ^^^ REIGN OF CH lENLUNG 

blood of their slaughtered compatriots. Wheresoever 
the lake was shallow enough to allow of men raising 
their heads above the water, there, for scores of acres, 
were to be seen all forms of ghastly fear, of agonising 
struggle, of spasm, of convulsion, of mortal conflict — 
death, and the fear of death — revenge, and the lunacy 
of revenge — hatred, and the frenzy of hatred — until 
the neutral spectators, of whom there were not a few, 
now descending the eastern side of the lake, at length 
averted their eyes in horror. This horror, which 
seemed incapable of further addition was, however, 
increased by an unexpected incident. The Bashkirs, 
beginning to perceive here and there the approach of 
the Chinese cavalry, felt it prudent, wheresoever they 
were sufficiently at leisure from the passions of the 
murderous scene, to gather into bodies. This was 
noticed by the governor of a small Chinese fort built 
upon an eminence above the lake, and immediately 
he threw in a broadside which spread havoc among 
the Bashkir tribe. As often as the Bashkirs collected 
into 'globes' and 'turms' as their only means of 
meeting the long line of descending Chinese cavalry, 
so often did the Chinese governor of the fort pour 
his exterminating broadside, until at length the lake, 
at the lower end, became one vast seething caldron 
of human bloodshed and carnage. The Chinese 
cavalry had reached the foot of the hills ; the Bash- 
kirs, attentive to their movements, had formed ; 
skirmishes had been fought ; and with a quick sense 
that the contest was henceforward rapidly becoming 
hopeless, the Bashkirs and Kirghizes began to retire. 
The pursuit was not as vigorous as the Kalmuck 



A BURMESE WAR 155 

hatred would have desired ; but, at the same time, the 
very gloomiest hatred could not but find, in their own 
dreadful experience of the Asiatic deserts, and in 
the certainty that these wretched Bashkirs had to 
repeat that same experience a second time, for 
thousands of miles, as the price exacted by a retri- 
butary providence for their vindictive cruelty, not the 
very gloomiest of the Kalmucks or the least reflect- 
ing, but found in all this a retaliatory chastisement 
more complete and absolute than any which their 
swords and lances could have obtained, or human 
vengeance could have devised." ^ 

With merciful foresight Ch'ienlung provided food 
and garments for the wretched remainder of the 
wanderers that had reached his frontier. Lands 
were also placed at their disposal, and on the shores 
of the lake a pillar was raised to commemorate the 
hardships endured, and the engagements fought on 
this great and notable march. 

But while peace and quiet were established on the 
northern frontiers of the Empire, the relations with 
Burma had become strained to the point of war. 
The histories do not describe clearly the causes of 
the rupture between the two countries. In Oriental 
states there are constantly occurring causes of 
hostility, and the probability is that incursions of 
Burmese marauders may have taxed the patience 
of the Chinese to breaking point. But, however 
that may be, certain it is that in 1768 Ch'ienlung 
ordered his troops to take the field. At first success 
attended the Chinese arms. The Burmese who had 

* *'The Flight of a Tartar Tribe," by De Quincey. 



156 THE REIGN OF CH'iENLUNG 

rashly invaded the province of Yunnan, were com- 
pletely defeated, and were compelled to retreat across 
the frontier. Flushed with victory the Chinese 
general followed in pursuit, and again inflicted defeat 
on the Burmese within their own territory. But no 
one who has traversed the mountain ranges which 
separate Western China from Burma will be sur- 
prised to hear that the difficulty of getting provisions 
from China considerably hampered the movements 
of the Celestials. Meanwhile the Burmese had 
summoned every available man to their standards, 
and had marched with overwhelming numbers against 
the invaders. Destitute of supplies and surrounded 
by the enemy the Chinese position was desperate. 
In a moment of despair the general ordered a 
sauve qui peut^ and only those few who were not 
slain by the victorious Burmese escaped through the 
mountain passes to China. 

On receipt of the news of this disaster, Ch'ienlung 
ordered Generals Alikun and Akwei to take com- 
mand of another army to avenge the defeat. Again 
the Chinese troops crossed the dizzy heights which 
separate the two Empires, and established themselves 
in a fortified camp at Bhamo. Starting from this 
point dappui^ Alikun at the head of a considerable 
force, marched towards the capital. At his approach 
the King of Burma lost heart, and though possessed 
of forces which might well have opposed successfully 
the advance of the Chinese troops, he proposed terms 
of peace. Alikun, nothing loth, being in the face of a 
numerically superior army, and with ranges of moun- 
tains and narrow defiles in the rear, readily agreed to 



PEACE WITH BURMA 1 5/ 

discuss a treaty of alliance. It cannot be denied that 
as diplomatists the Chinese are not to be surpassed, 
and though on the present occasion at a disadvantage 
in the field, Alikun succeeded in completely over- 
reaching the Burmese Ministers in conclave. By the 
terms of the treaty which was then signed, perpetual 
peace was proclaimed between the two Empires, and 
the King agreed to pay a triennal tribute to the Court 
of Peking. The tribute then provided for was 
regularly paid up to the time of our taking possession 
of Upper Burma, and even afterwards, for by a most 
mistaken and unfortunate belief in the power of 
China, and the importance of her alliance, we agreed, 
after establishing ourselves at Mandalay, that the 
tribute should still continue to be paid by the highest 
Burmese authority in the country. The leading 
principle of our policy in China since the war of 1842 
has been to establish by every art and form the 
equality of our government with that of Peking. By 
this mistaken step, however, we became generally 
recognised as tributaries of China, and by our own 
act and deed laid ourselves open to impertinences 
similar to those perpetrated on Lord Macartney, 
when the flag on the boat which carried him to 
Peking was made to bear the inscription, " Tribute 
Bearers to the Imperial Court." Peace was no sooner 
secured on the south-western frontier than distur- 
bances broke out among the Miaotzu tribes on the 
borders of Szech'uan. The Miaotzu are an interest- 
ing people, and are the descendants of one of the 
aboriginal tribes who inhabited China before the 
advent of the Chinese. As the primitive Chinese 



158 THE REIGN OF CH'iENLUNG 

settlers advanced over the country and possessed 
themselves of the plains and valleys, the aboriginal 
tribes were driven to take refuge in the mountain 
ranges of Western and South-western China. These 
dispossessed tribes have never been entirely subdued, 
and the Chinese with that tolerance which in some 
regard characterises their government, have refrained 
from interfering with the internal affairs of the 
mountaineers, unless compelled to do so by aggres- 
sion on their part. The Miaotzu, who are by nature 
joyous and independent, have thus followed their 
own customs, and have preserved their form of 
civilisation in entire independence of the more 
cultured people by whom they are surrounded. 
In the mountain valleys where they dwell they 
still preserve old-world customs, which are found 
only in the most backward portions of the earth's 
surface. That strange custom of couvade still 
exists among them, and their marriage customs 
carry us back to the time when the world was 
indeed young. Small in stature and badly armed, 
they can never have been a match for Chinese 
soldiers ; but like the Afridis of the North- West 
Frontier of India, their true strength lay in the 
intricate and difficult nature of the country which 
they inhabited. 

At various times wars have broken out between 
these people and their Chinese neighbours, and so 
far as it is possible to judge, the outrages which 
have led up to these hostilities have as often been 
committed by one side as the other. A few skir- 
mishes on the Szech'uan frontier led on this 



A REBELLION OF ABORIGINES 1 59 

occasion to a war which was intended to be one 
of extermination. In these engagements the 
Miaotzii were general!}^ successful, and in ordinary 
circumstances it may well have been that a peace 
would have been patched up between the disputants. 
But Ch'ienlung had been long fed on victory, and 
his troops by constant warfare had reached a high 
standard of combativeness and efficiency. He was 
unwilling therefore to submit to defeat at the hands 
of the Miao barbarians, and made immediate prepara- 
tions for the despatch of a punitive expedition. But 
being ready to give the rebels one more chance 
of repentance, he, before sending an army into 
the field, despatched two envoys to the rebellious 
tribes bearing an Imperial letter offering terms of 
peace. The chief, however, flushed with victory, and 
barbarously unmindful of the hospitality due to 
plenipotentiaries, murdered the two envoys, and 
scattered the letter of peace to the four winds of 
heaven. The die was now cast, and a strong force 
was at once sent to punish the recalcitrant rebels. 
The chief command of this army was given to 
General Wen Fu, with Akwei and Feng Shene as 
Lieutenant-Generals. The Emperor's orders were 
stringent. The two fortified camps of the enemy 
were to be captured at all costs, and an iron heel 
was to be placed on the necks of the rebels. The 
district over which the army had to deploy was 
mountainous in the extreme. The roads were 
nothing more than mountain tracks, and except in 
some places where suspension bridges crossed the 
rivers, passages across the torrents had to be made 



l6o THE REIGN OF CH^ lENLUNG 

in skin boats. The three generals at the head of as 
many separate forces converged by different ways on 
the Golden River district. General Wen Fu, at the 
head of ten thousand men, took the main route, and 
having arrived within striking distance of the enemy, 
fortified himself in an entrenched camp. Like many 
Chinese generals he seems to have been of the 
opinion that the presence of his master's big 
battalions, and the sight of a forest of flags would 
strike terror into the hearts of the hillmen. But he 
was mistaken. He had no sooner established him- 
self than he was rudely awakened by a sudden and 
furious onslaught of the enemy. The attack was so 
unexpected, and the manner of warfare was so little 
understood by the Chinese officers and men, that 
hardly any show of resistance was made, and the 
invaders were cut down like grass before the scythe. 
General Wen Fu was killed and only a small remnant 
of his force succeeded in effecting a junction with the 
other detachments. 

The news of this disaster reached Ch'ienluno; as he 
was enjoying his ease at Jehol, his hunting palace in 
Mongolia. Without a moment's delay he called 
together a council, by whose advice he promoted 
Akwei to the supreme command, and ordered 
him to prosecute the war with all despatch. Akwei 
lost no time in obeying these orders, and after a 
battle which lasted five days and five nights, so 
completely defeated the Miaotzu that they came 
forward with humble petitions for peace. Ch'ienlung 
would, however, make no terms with rebels who had 
so flagrantly defied his authority, and Akwei again 



IMPERIAL BAD FAITH l6l 

pushed his advantage to the utmost. At last every 
stronghold but one was taken, and at this remaining 
fortress the Miaotzti offered an heroic defence. So 
bravely did they fight that Akwei, with all the force 
at his command was unable to capture the place. 
Famine, however, brought the defenders to their 
knees. The stronghold was yielded, and the chief 
with his wife and children surrendered to the 
Chinese general on condition that their lives should 
be spared. General Gordon had some experience of 
the value of such a promise as that made by Akwei 
on this occasion. It will be remembered that when 
the Wangs of Soochow surrendered to Gordon on the 
express condition that their lives should be granted 
to them, Li Hungchang treacherously put them to 
death. In the same way Ch'ienlung acted towards 
the Miaotzu chief and family. With great pomp and 
circumstance Akwei presented his captives to the 
Emperor, who in spite of the plighted word of the 
general, sentenced the chief, Sonomu, and his family 
to death, and transported the men of the garrison to 
Ili, where they were condemned to labour as military 
convicts for the rest of their lives. 

The conquest of the Miaotzu was one which fos- 
tered the Imperial vanity of Ch'ienlung. They were 
a tribe within his own frontier, and had never before 
suffered at the hands of the Chinese such crushing 
defeats as had now overtaken them. A dukedom was 
conferred on Akwei, who was further graced with a 
yellow girdle to replace the red one which had hitherto 
marked his rank, while abundant honours were 
showered on his subordinates. For some reason, which 

12 



1 62 THE REIGN OF CH'iENLUNG 

does not plainly appear, General Fu Te, who had been 
second in command, was left out in the cold, or, at 
least, considered that he had been so treated. He was 
a rough soldier, and was not accustomed to conceal 
his feelings. The elevation of Akwei was, in his 
eyes, excessive, and he was incautious enough to ex- 
press his views on the subject. In the East it is not 
wise to denounce a Court favourite when in high 
honour, and the friends of Akwei took occasion to 
bring to light certain peccadillos which during his 
career had been committed by Fu Te, and which were 
probably far less important than those which might 
have been laid to their own charge. But the tide was 
in their favour, and the Emperor sentenced the general 
to death. Fu Te had served his country well in 
Mongolia and in South-western China, and had re- 
ceived signal instances of his Imperial master's favour 
for the skill with which he had seconded the efforts of 
Chao Huei in the pacification of the tribes in Central 
Asia, and one cannot, therefore, but regret that so 
stern a fate should have overtaken him. In narrating 
the incidents connected with the Miaotzu war, the 
Imperial Chronicler states that the cost of the expe- 
dition amounted to 30,000,000 taels. 

In an Empire extending over such a wide area as 
that ruled by Ch'ienlung, and in a country where the 
administration from its decentralised nature has never 
been thoroughly effective, it is impossible that there 
should not be constant outbreaks and disturbances in 
the outlying districts. Formosa has always been a 
difficult possession. The ranges of mountains which 
fringe its eastern shores form the homes of savage 



FIGHTING IN FORMOSA 1 63 

tribes who have never submitted to the Chinese yoke ; 
while the Chinese settlers on the western plains have 
acquired a rough and independent habit from the lack 
of all official restraint. It will hz remembered that 
Koxinga found a congenial refuge in its harbours 
from the attacks of the Manchus, and it has been at 
all times an Alsatia to which the lawless and the 
vagabonds have naturally gravitated. In 1786 a local 
official took upon himself the responsibility of 
arresting a man named Lin on the charge of dis- 
loyalty. It must be confessed that the arrest was 
fully justified. Lin was one of those men whose 
personality was such as enabled him to exercise a 
powerful influence on his fellow men. By establishing 
a secret society he had succeeded in drawing many 
thousands of his fellow-subjects to his banners ; and 
the local mandarin not unnaturally thought that if he 
were not quickly lodged in prison he might possibly 
seat himself on the throne. But he did not count 
the cost, and the news was no sooner bruited about 
that Lin was a prisoner than his followers rose, mur- 
dered the venturesome mandarin, and released his 
prisoner. Here were undoubtedly the makings of a 
very pretty quarrel, and Ch'ienlung was not the man 
to submit to be browbeaten. An army was sent to 
the scene of strife, but like so many first movements 
in Chinese campaigns the efforts of the force were 
doomed to complete failure. The troops had no 
sooner touched the shores of Formosa than they were 
attacked by Lin's banditti and utterly destroyed, the 
general in command saving himself only by a hasty 
flight to the mainland. On receipt of this news 



164 THE REIGN OF CH'iENLUNG 

Ch'ienlung, after an usual custom, offered the rebels 
terms of peace. What the nature of these were does 
not appear, but that negotiations were carried on is 
plain from the fact that Lin made counter propositions 
to those presented to him by Ch'ienlung's envoys. He 
demanded first of all that the mandarin who after his 
release had attempted cruel measures of repression 
should be put to death ; (2) that he should not be 
called upon to present himself at Peking ; and (3) 
that the administration on the island should be of a 
milder form than had been the case hitherto. It was 
said that upwards of twenty thousand soldiers had 
fallen in battle, and though it is not incumbent upon us 
to accept this as an accurate statement, yet there can 
be no doubt that the loss of life had been very great. 
The recollection of this death roll, coupled with Lin's 
repudiation of his Imperial terms, determined Ch'ien- 
lung to send an overwhelming force to crush the 
movement. 

An army of one hundred thousand men, under the 
command of General Fu K'angan, was shipped across 
the straits which divided Fuhkien from the scene of 
strife, and though Lin's troops fought bravely against 
the invaders, they were no match for the seasoned 
Imperial soldiers, many of whom had learned the art 
of war in Burma, and had helped to carry the fast- 
nesses of the Miaotzu tribes. In these conditions there 
could be but one result, and before long General Fu 
was able to return to Peking with the news that the 
island was thoroughly pacified. The loss of life among 
the natives in this campaign is frightful to contem- 
plate, and as a matter of fact Fu's triumph was 



REVOLT IN COCHIN CHINA 1 65 

achieved by making a desert and calling it peace. At 
the present time Formosa is presenting to the Japanese 
the same administrative difficulties that it has always 
offered to the Chinese since its incorporation into the 
Empire. The people are not readily handled, and 
the neighbourhood of the mountain tribes adds an 
ever-impending terror to the occupation of the more 
habitable and less inaccessible parts of the island. 

At this time Ch'ienlung was not only master of his 
own Empire, but was also the arbiter of the fates of 
the surrounding countries. His battalions were so 
vast, the civilisation which he represented was, com- 
paratively speaking, so advanced, and the weapons 
used by his troops were so superior to those employed 
in other Eastern lands, that his name was one to con- 
jure with ; and in disputed successions, whether in 
Tibet, Mongolia, or Cochin China, he was commonly 
appealed to as judge. Shortly after the conclusion of 
the Formosan war a revolution broke out in Cochin 
China, headed by an ex-Minister named Yuan, which 
ended in the deposition of the King. In this emer- 
gency the defeated potentate appealed for help to 
Ch'ienlung, who ordered the Governor of the neigh- 
bouring province of Kwangsi to reinstate the de- 
throned monarch. This the Governor successfully 
effected. On his return towards the Chinese frontier, 
however, he was suddenly attacked by the rebel 
leader who, by force of arms and by clever strategy, 
inflicted a humiliating defeat upon him. On the 
occasion of this reverse Ch'ienlung appointed the 
veteran Fu K'angan to avenge the outrage. Pro- 
bably the fame of this noted general impressed Yuan 



1 66 THE REIGN OF CH'IENLUNG 

with the consciousness that further resistance was 
useless. At all events he made the most abject sub- 
mission to the Imperial forces, and so persuasive was 
he in his pleadings for a favourable consideration that 
Ch'ienlung not only forgave him his offences, but 
placed him on the throne of the now, for the second 
time, dispossessed king. To display his gratitude 
Yuan, taking advantage of Ch'ienlung's eightieth 
birthday, presented himself at Jehol, and, as a reward 
for his loyalty, was invested with the title and 
authority of a tributary sovereign. 

The reign of Ch'ienlung was throughout a period 
of wars and rumours of wars, and he had no sooner 
settled the Cochin China difficulty to his satisfaction 
than his attention was directed to the extreme western 
part of his subordinate dominions. It happened 
that a short time previously the Panshen Lama of 
ulterior Tibet had made a pilgrimage to Peking, in 
order to implore the Seven Weeks of Blessings on 
the aged Emperor. In the presence of his Imperial 
Majesty, the Lama displayed Buddhist relics so 
numerous that, as the native historian states, they 
" might have filled the sea, and when piled up were as 
high as mountains." While glorying in these reli- 
gious trophies he was seized with small-pox and died 
after a short illness. His valuables and treasures, 
which seem to have been as plentiful as his relics, were 
handed over to his elder brother, the Hut'ukht'u, 
or Saint Tsungpa, to the exclusion of his younger 
brother, who was further excommunicated as a 
heretic for belonging to the " Red Religion " rather 
than the orthodox yellow phase of the Faith. 



A LAMAS REVENGE 



167 



Shemarpa, the younger brother, could have put up 
vvith the excommunication, but to be disinherited was 




THE LAMA TEMPLE AT PEKING. 



more than he felt inclined to endure, and, with a 
notable want of patriotism, he, by way of revenge for 



1 68 

the treatment he had received, invited the Gurkhas 
of Nepal to enrich themselves by plundering the 
immense wealth which Tsungpa had appropriated to 
himself. Ever ready for either fighting or plunder, 
the Gurkhas easily yielded to the temptation, and 
having collected an army crossed the frontier into 
Tibet. Generals Pa Chung, Go Huei, and Cheng Te, 
the Chinese Wardens of the Marches, being well 
aware that the troops at their command were quite 
insufficient to withstand the invaders, compounded 
with them by offering them a bribe on behalf of the 
Tibetans of 10,500 ounces of gold to be paid annually 
by the abbots of the Lamaist monasteries. At the 
same time the gallant generals reported to the throne 
that the Gurkhas had tendered their allegiance to the 
Empire, and had presented tribute as an offering of 
peace. 

When the time for the first settlement arrived the 
Gurkhas addressed a letter to the Chinese Resident, 
requesting payment of the sum agreed upon. By 
skilful manoeuvring the Resident evaded, for the time 
being, this demand, but when the second year's 
subsidy became due, his blandishments failed, and 
the Gurkhas invaded the country in force. The rich 
city of Tashilumbo, or " Mountain of Blessings,"' 
where resided the Saint Tsungpa, was their objective. 
The position of the city is by nature strong, being 
protected on one side by the " Much-winding " River, 
and on the other by a range of precipitous mountains. 
If the Lamas, who numbered several thousand, had 
seriously undertaken the defence of the sacred city, 
they would, without question, have been able to hold 



FALL OF TASHILUMBO 1 69 

it against the assault of the Gurkhas. But these holy 
men being debilitated by their religious calling, and 
being disinclined to fight, discovered that the omens 
were favourable, and that the fact of the " Mother of 
Heaven " having taken the city under her special 
protection made it unnecessary for them to bestir 
themselves. The result was that Tashilumbo fell an 
easy prey to the invader, and that those who should 
have defended it were either dispersed or slain. The 
news of this defeat completely upset the proverbial 
calm of the Dalai Lama, who not unnaturally feared 
that the same fate which had overtaken the " Moun- 
tain of Blessings " might be shared by the holy city 
of Lhasa. The gods not having interfered for the 
protection of the divine soil of Tibet he, in his diffi- 
culty, turned to Peking for help, and it so happened 
that at the moment when his appeal reached Ch'ien- 
lung. Pa Chung was commanding the escort which 
was accompanying the Emperor to Jehol. The 
position was further complicated, from Pa Chung's 
point of view, by the fact that a revelation was at 
the same time made of the compact entered into 
between him and the Gurkhas. Feeling incapable 
of facing the inevitable inquiry he escaped from the 
dilemma by committing suicide, and his mouth being 
thus closed his two late colleagues promptly dis- 
claimed all participation in the arrangement which 
had been come to, and denounced Pa Chung as 
an arch traitor. The answer to these disclaimers 
was an order to those who made them to 
march at once into Tibet and to drive out the 
invaders. In order to make victory certain, how- 



170 THE REIGN OF CH lENLUNG 

ever, General Fu K'angan was appointed Com- 
mander-in-chief, with directions to collect Manchu 
troops and trained colonists to attack the enemy. 
A considerable share of blame was attached by the 
Emperor to the late Resident in Tibet, who, to 
expiate his offences, was sentenced to march at the 
head of the troops, wearing on his neck a Canque, or 
heavy wooden collar. 

Meanwhile the Gurkhas, who had taken part in the 
corrupt negotiations of peace, had returned to Nepal 
with their plunder, leaving only a thousand men to 
guard the frontier. So pusillanimous were the Chinese 
generals on the spot that they neither interfered with 
these "gorged vagrants" as the Chinese historian 
calls them, nor attacked the insignificant force left to 
oppose them. In the following year, hovvever, General 
Fu entered ulterior Tibet from Kokonor, and having 
defeated the Gurkha frontier force, invaded Nepal. 
For strategic reasons he divided his army into three 
columns, the centre one being under his personal 
command. The generals commanding the right and 
left columns had orders to push on and turn the 
flanks of any force that might be opposing the main 
advance. But from the first the Gurkhas showed 
rather signs of retreating than of advancing, and as 
they retired they sought to impede the enemy's move- 
ments by destroying the suspension and other bridges 
which crossed the mountain torrents in those highland 
districts. Though these tactics delayed the Chinese 
advance, General Fu pushed persistently on, and 
inflicted several severe defeats on the enemy. The 
Gurkhas were now thoroughly alarmed, and sent 



SUBMISSION OF THE GURKHAS I7I 

messengers to beg for peace. But Fu was inexorable, 
and in spite of the stubborn opposition o^ the Gurkhas 
at points of vantage, he succeeded in reaching within 
striking distance of the capital, Khatmandu. This 
advance completed the demoralisation of the Gurkha 
army, and the approach of winter, when a retreat 
through the mountain passes of Nepal and Tibet 
must necessarily have been attended with difficulty 
and danger, inclined General Fu to listen to renewed 
pleading for peace. Finally, this was granted, and Fu 
retired, after having received the submission of the 
Gurkha chiefs, who declared their country to be tribu- 
tary to China. From that day to this tribute missions in 
compliance with this treaty have without fail wended 
their weary way through the wastes of Tibet to 
Peking, at the stated intervals agreed upon. 




VI 



THE OPENING OF DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE 
WITPI CPIINA 

The reign of Ch'ienlung was now drawing to its 
close, but before he abdicated, in 1796, an event 
occurred which opened new relations between the 
West and China. Up to this time the relations of 
foreigners with the Chinese Government had been in 
a most unsatisfactory condition, although England 
had attempted on many occasions so to open diplo- 
matic intercourse as to secure to her subjects at least 
the rights and privileges belonging to traders in 
foreign lands. So long ago as the reign of Queen 
Elizabeth an expedition was sent out under John 
Mildenhall to open trading relations with the Celestial 
Empire. The mission was a failure, but, nothing 
daunted, Charles I. granted a Charter to a body of 
English merchants empowering them to form an 
official company to promote commerce with the 
Chinese. In pursuance of this right. Captain Weddell 
in 1635 reached Macao in command of a small trading 
fleet. The Portuguese, whose Government had pro- 
mised to support the British venture, threw, however, 

172 



OPENING OF TRADE 1 73 

every obstacle in the way of the EngHsh captain, who 
at length wearied out by the obstructions offered by 
the Portuguese, and the subterfuges of the mandarins, 
determined to advance in his boats to Canton. When 
passing the Bogue Forts on his way up the river, 
a battery suddenly opened fire on his flotilla, upon 
which he at once determined to inflict punishment on 
the authors of this attack. Having moved his ships 
into position opposite the forts, he hoisted a red 
flag, and opened fire on the batteries. The Chinese 
gunners, unaccustomed to such reprisals, soon ceased 
to reply to the English guns. Weddell thereupon 
landed a force, took possession of the forts, and hoisted 
the British colours over them. 

This kind of argument had the effect which it 
always has had upon the Chinese. Negotiations were 
opened at once, and the right to trade was granted on 
condition that the guns captured from the Bogue 
Forts should be returned. Very little however re- 
sulted from this agreement. The exactions imposed 
by the Chinese on all imports and exports were so 
excessive that the Company felt it almost useless to 
attempt to carry on a trade. During the piratical 
rule, however, of Koxinga's son at Formosa and 
Amoy, some privileges of value were granted to 
English traders, and in 1678 the trade at the two 
places was valued at something like 60,000 dollars. 
Three years later, however, the Company withdrew 
from these ports, and established a single factory at 
Canton. Subsequently Mr. Catchpoole was appointed 
Consul in China, and in 1701 succeeded in inducing 
the Chinese to allow ships to trade at Ningpo. But 



174 DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

again the extortions of the mandarins destroyed the 
expected profit of the venture, and at Canton equally 
grievous burdens were tending to make trade im- 
possible. The duty on imports was increased to i6 
per cent., and heavy exactions were demanded in 
exchange for the right of provisioning the ships. An 
appeal against these disabilities was made to the 
Governor of Canton in person, but though some tem- 
porary relief was granted, the system which had been 
adopted of farming out the foreign trade to a small 
company of native merchants had proved so con- 
venient to the authorities that, though it practically 
entailed the evils complained of, it was again reverted 
to, while an additional duty of lo per cent, upon all 
exports was further imposed. Such was the position 
of things when Ch'ienlung ascended the throne, and 
one of the first acts of his long and glorious reign was 
the remission of this extra burden. The Emperor, 
however, coupled the concession with the demand that 
the foreign merchants should listen to his gracious 
message on their knees, and should give up all the 
arms which they possessed on board their ships. 
Happily the merchants refused to buy the Imperial 
favour by such observances, and they neither bowed 
the knee nor gave up their guns at Ch'ienlung's 
bidding. Though hampered by vexatious regulations 
and impoverished by extortions, the foreign trade at 
Canton made some headway, and it is stated that in 
the year of Ch'ienlung's accession there were anchored 
at that port four English, two French, two Dutch, one 
Danish, and one Swedish vessel. In 1742 H.M.S. 
Centurion^ commanded by Commodore Anson, the 



AN ADVENTUROUS TRADER \J^ 

first British man-of-war which had ever visited China, 
arrived at Macao. With an even hand the Chinese 
sought to inflict on the Commodore the same petty- 
annoyances as those to which the merchants were 
accustomed. He was refused provisions for his ship, 
an unfriendly act which he met by demanding an 
interview with the Governor, and by refusing to leave 
the river until he had been supplied with all necessary 
requirements. 

With the shortsighted policy which has always 
distinguished the conduct of the Chinese towards 
foreigners, the authorities at Canton, instead of trying 
to foster the trade which was already enriching the 
native officials and merchants, continued to heap 
burdens upon it, until they nearly succeeded in starving 
out the European traders. As at present is the case with 
the Likin duties, the mandarins, at that time, were 
risking, for the sake of an immediate temporary gain, 
the future and increasing profit which might legiti- 
mately be expected to accrue to them. So discou- 
raged were the foreigners at this attitude of the Canton 
anthorities, that they again attempted to open a trade 
with Amoy and Ningpo. In neither case, however, 
was the enterprise successful, and, in 1759, Mr. Flint, 
who had been sent to Ningpo as a pioneer of com- 
merce, finding commercial relations impossible at that 
port, took ship in a native vessel for Tientsin, from 
which place he communicated a memorial to the 
Emperor, showing the position of affairs. ' So enter- 
prising a foreigner was evidently one to be got rid of, 
and by way of an answer he was ordered to return to 
Canton in the company of a mandarin appointed to 



176 DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

escort him. Ostensibly, however, he had gained much 
that he had sought for. All duties over 6 per cent, 
were remitted, and illegal exactions were forbidden. 

According to the Chinese custom in such matters, 
the Governor of the city desired to communicate the 
Emperor's orders to Mr. Flint in person. Fortunately 
for that g"entleman he was accompanied on the 
occasion by some of his own countrymen, for, to 
the extreme astonishment of himself and his friends, 
they were, without notice, forcibly hurried into the 
Governor's presence, where the official myrmidons 
tried to compel them to do homage on their knees 
after the Chinese manner. The Englishmen resisted 
this violence, and with such determination that, at 
length, the Governor ordered his men to desist from 
what seemed likely to prove an unsuccessful struggle. 
He then bade Mr. Flint advance, and showinc: him a 
paper which purported to be an Imperial edict, he 
informed him that he was to be banished to Macao, 
and subsequently to be deported to England as a 
punishment for having endeavoured to open a trade 
at Ningpo contrary to orders from Peking. This 
sentence was carried out in its entirety, and the 
Chinaman who had written the petition which had 
been presented to the Emperor, was beheaded for 
having traitorously encouraged a foreigner. 

It is difficult to understand how the foreign resi- 
dents at Canton could have put up with the insults 
to which they were now daily subjected. " The 
barbarians are like beasts, and are not to be ruled 
on the same principles as ordinary men," said the 
Chinese ; and, to give them their due, they certainly 



AN ENGLISHMAN STRANGLED IJJ 

acted up to their opinions. The handful of foreigners, 
who were constantly threatened by the millions of 
natives by whom they were surrounded, were power- 
less to resist successfully the indignities which were 
heaped upon them, and some lamentable instances 
occurred in which gross injustice resulted to indi- 
viduals from the inequality of the opposing forces. 
In 1784, on the occasion of a salute being fired from 
an English ship, a Chinaman was accidentally killed 
by a shot which had been carelessly left in the gun. 
The authorities Immediately demanded that the man 
who fired the gun should be handed over to them for 
punishment. Having a shrewd suspicion that this 
demand would be refused, the Chinese strengthened 
their hands by the adoption of a subterfuge. They 
seized the supercargo of another vessel, and gave 
formal notice that his release could only be obtained 
by the surrender of the gunner. The supercargo 
was well treated in his confinement, and, believing 
that the object of the mandarins in desiring the 
gunner's presence was merely to arrive at a full 
understanding of the case, he wrote urging that the 
man should be sent. Unfortunately this was done. 
The supercargo was instantly released and the gunner 
was strangled. Happily this Is the only case in which 
an Englishman, under similar circumstances, has been 
handed over to the tender mercies of the Chinese, and 
it may be safely assumed that It will be the last. 

Enough has been said to show how extremely 
unsatisfactory were the relations between China and 
the East India Company during the last century. 
The whole position was so derogatory to England, 

13 



178 DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

and was so full of profitless difficulties to the mer- 
chants themselves, that the serious attention of the 
English Government was directed to the situation, 
and it was finally decided to send a special Ambassa- 
dor to the Court of Peking to arrange terms on which 
the natives of the two countries might live together 
in peace and amity. In 1788 Colonel Cathcart was 
appointed to this office. Unhappily, however, he 
died before reaching China, and four years later 
Lord Macartney was nominated to succeed him. 
Great preparations were made to confer dignity on 
this mission, and presents of every sort were collected 
to serve as tokens of the friendly feeling of the third 
George towards the aged Emperor. On arriving off 
the coast of the Celestial Empire, Lord Macartney 
was met with every sign of consideration and good- 
will, and pilots were waiting in readiness to steer 
H.M.S. Lion through the straits of Formosa north- 
ward to the mouth of the Peiho. There Lord 
Macartney was received by a special Commissioner 
of high rank, who bade him welcome in the name 
of his Imperial master. On the shores of the river, 
where, in 1859, British soldiers and sailors were 
treacherously fired on from the neighbouring forts, 
were collected gifts and provisions for presentation 
to " the great mandarin, who," as Ch'ienlung said, 
" had come so far to testify the friendly feelings of 
England towards China." Twenty bullocks, a hun- 
dred and twenty sheep, a hundred and twenty pigs, 
and countless other provender, were provided for the 
food of the Englishmen. A fleet of yacht-like vessels, 
numbers of vehicles, and numerous horses were held 



l8o DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

in readiness to convey the Embassy to Tientsin. 
Preferring to go by water, a specially commodious 
vessel was prepared for Lord Macartney, while sixteen 
other boats provided accommodation for the members 
of the mission and the escort. At Tientsin the' 
Embassy was royally entertained, and during their 
stay at that port dramas were continuously acted for 
their amusement in a temporary theatre erected on 
the shore opposite their vessels. After a further 
voyage Lord Macartney reached Tungchow, the 
port of Peking. Here preparations were made for 
the land journey to the capital, and here also dis- 
cussions were renewed as to the etiquette to be 
observed on the Ambassador being presented to 
the Emperor. As has already been shown, the 
Chinese have persistently attempted to induce all 
foreign envoys to k'ot'ow when entering the presence 
of the " Son of Heaven." It was part of the duty of 
the Imperial Commissioner attached to the Embassy 
to induce Lord Macartney to perform this degrading 
ceremony, and he used his best endeavours to carry 
his point. But Lord Macartney, who had received 
positive instructions on the subject before leaving 
England, distinctly declined to yield, unless a 
Chinese official of equal rank with himself would 
k'ot'ow before the portrait of the English King. 
This condition was referred to Ch'ienlung, who, 
recognising the uselessness of continuing the dis- 
cussion, had the wisdom to allow the matter to drop. 
The transportation of the presents from Tungchow 
to Peking was a matter of some difficulty. They 
varied in size from carriages to watches, and some 



LORD MACARTNEY S PRESENTS 



I8l 



idea of their number may be gauged from the fact 
that ninety waggons, forty barrows, two hundred 




i 







A CHINESE COOLIE. 



horses, and three thousand men were employed to 
carry them. It speaks well for the manner in 



1 82 DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

which they were packed, that, though many were 
fragile, they all arrived safely at the house pre- 
pared for the Ambassador in the neighbourhood of 
the Summer Palace of Yuan-ming-yuan. 

As the members of the mission entered the gates 
of Peking, on their way to their destination, a salute 
of guns was fired in their honour, and every courtesy 
was extended to them. Ch'ienlung was at this time 
at Jehol, in Mongolia, and as it was plainly impossible 
to carry the presents thither, it was agreed that they 
should be arranged in the throne-room of the palace 
at Peking to await the inspection of His Imperial 
Majesty on his return to the capital. The presence 
of Lord Macartney in this room of State suggested 
a recurrence of the vexed question of the k'ot'ow, 
and the Minister Ho, who was especially appointed 
to entertain the English Ambassador, was persistent 
in his endeavours to reopen the question. Lord 
Macartney, however, was firm, and explained that 
a derogatory action on the part of an Ambassador 
was in Europe regarded as a derogatory action on 
the part of the Ambassador's Sovereign, and empha- 
sised the point by describing how Timagoras, a 
Greek ambassador to the Court of Persia, was 
executed on his return to Athens for having sub- 
mitted to discourtesy at the Court of Teheran. 
Lord Macartney further took this opportunity of 
expostulating with Ho about the impertinent legend 
which had been inscribed on the flag of the vessel on 
which he had voyaged up the Peiho, and which had 
described him as a " Tribute-Bearer from the country 
of England." 



LORD MACARTNEY AT JEHOL 1 83 

So soon as was practicable, that is to say, on the 
2nd of September, 1793, the Embassy started for 
Jehol, Lord Macartney travelling in an English 
postchaise. On the fourth day they reached the 
Great Wall, where a strong guard of soldiers was 
drawn up to do them honour. Three days later 
they reached Jehol, where they were accommodated 
in one of the most spacious houses in the town. 
After many discussions with Ho an audience was 
arranged for the fourteenth of the month. The 
Chinese have a most uncomfortable habit of hold- 
ing their State ceremonies at daybreak, and it is 
part of the etiquette that those attending such 
functions should be in waiting some hours before 
the appointed time. Fortunately on this occasion 
the temperature was mild, and therefore no serious 
inconvenience was suffered ; but in the winter season 
not the least arduous part of a Minister's duty is to 
wait at the early hours of the morning in cold, fire- 
less rooms for the honour of a momentary conver- 
sation with the " Son of Heaven." A tent set in the 
garden of the palace formed the Court of Audience, 
and so soon as Ch'ienlung had mounted the throne. 
Lord Macartney, with a number of envoys from 
tributary states, was admitted into the presence. 
It had been arranged that he should offer precisely 
the same homage to the Emperor as he was accus- 
tomed to offer to his own Sovereign. As he advanced, 
therefore, to the throne, he knelt on one knee, and, 
raising the gold box which contained the King's 
letter with both hands above his head, he presented 
it to Ch'ienlung, who, taking it from his }iands, in- 



184 DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

quired as to the health of the Engh'sh Sovereign, 
at the same time expressing gratification that he 
should have sent his Ambassador to so distant a 
Court. In the course of the conversation which 
followed there occurred a difficulty in interpreting, 
and in reply to a question put from the throne, 
Ch'ienlung was informed that the only member of 
the Embassy who spoke Chinese was George 
Staunton, the Ambassador's page, aged thirteen. 
Ch'ienlung ordered the lad to be presented to him, 
and, being pleased with the boy's manner and appear- 
ance, took his purse from his belt and presented it 
to him. 

Subsequently a feast was spread, when the seat of 
honour was given to Lord Macartney with whom the 
Emperor exchanged civilities, and to whom he sent 
dainty morsels of food and wine from his own table. 
So far, however, the object of the mission had not 
been advanced one iota. The audience had been 
merely formal, and in his conversations with the 
Minister Ho, Lord Macartney had found it impos- 
sible to discuss at length the main issues between 
them. Ho was a typical Oriental courtier, subtle, 
polite, and apparently ingenuous. He possessed, also, 
a full share of that Oriental diplomacy which enables 
Chinese negotiators to avoid disagreeable topics. In 
other respects, too, he was a typical Eastern states- 
man. " Born in the garret, in the kitchen bred," he 
happened on one occasion to attract the Emperor's 
attention by his courtly bearing and handsome 
presence. With unusual rapidity, he was advanced 
from office to office until he reached the highest rung 



ILL-GOTTEN GAINS 1 85 

of the ladder. So long as Ch'ienlung lived, he 
maintained his position, but evil days fell upon 
him when Chiach'ing succeeded to the throne. The 
new Emperor had long disapproved of the unlimited 
power which Ho had exercised. He knew, also, that 
he had acquired immense wealth in other ways than 
by the lawful rewards of his official position, and 
Ch'ienlung was therefore, no sooner gathered to his 
fathers than Ho was arrested on a long series of 
charges embracing malpractices in every relation 
of life. The amount of wealth discovered in his 
palace must have been a surprise even to his judges. 
Gold, silver, and jewels to the value of ^^23,330,000 
were discovered in his treasury. This alone was 
enough to convict him of the gravest crimes, and 
from a Chinese point of view, to justify the sentence 
passed upon him, of being cut to pieces. In con- 
sideration however of his long service the Emperor 
was graciously pleased to commute this cruel fate 
for the present of a silken cord, which brought the 
^ nefarious career of this illustrious culprit to a close. 
But though corrupt and officially dishonest Ho was 
an agreeable companion, and made an exceptionally 
good cicerone on the occasion when, at the Emperor's 
invitation. Lord Macartney visited the Palace Gardens 
at Jehol. Indeed on this day he, in the exercise of 
friendship, exerted himself unduly, and was indebted 
for the recovery from his fatigues to the kindly 
attention of the doctor of tha- English Embassy. 
One other entertainment, which again took place at 
the very uncomfortable hour of sunrise, brought the 
Imperial hospitalities to an end, and, on the 21st of 



1 86 DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

September, Lord Macartney left Jehol for Peking. 
After some weeks' stay in that capital it was arranged 
that he should leave for the south, and the exigences 
of his position obliged him to accept the route laid 
down by the Chinese. This entailed a long land 
journey through the provinces of Shantung, Kiangsu, 
Chehkiang, and Fuhkien to Canton, where he arrived 
on the 19th of December. He eventually reached 
England on September 5, 1794. 

It is impossible to study the history of Lord 
Macartney's mission without observing the con- 
sistent political hostility towards foreign nations 
which was shown by the Chinese Government, at 
the same time that much good-will towards the 
Ambassador personally was displayed by the Emperor 
and some of the officials. No commercial privileges 
resulted from Lord Macartney's negotiations, and 
the Ill-concealed contempt of most of those with 
whom he was brought into contact marks but 
too clearly the spirit of exclusive jealousy which 
has guided, and is still guiding, the policy of the 
Peking Cabinet. The Impertinent inscription on the 
Ambassador's flag, the facts that though treated with 
personal respect he was guarded as a prisoner ; that 
those of the mission who remained at Peking during 
his absence at Jehol were practically confined to the 
house, and were not allowed even to receive visits 
from the European missionaries in the capital ; that 
the tedious land journey from the north to the south 
of the Empire was unnecessarily inflicted upon him, 
all point to the same supercilious regard which it 
is the habit of the Celestials to entertain towards 



ch'irnlung abdicates 187 

foreigners. The Chinese have habitually assumed 
such a distant and lofty attitude towards Europeans 
that they have by force of insistence succeeded to 
some extent in inducing these to accept them at their 
own valuation. In this attitude they have been 
strengthened by the fact that unfortunately the 
" Outer Barbarians " have invariably appeared as 
suppliants for favours to come, and that they have 
been always the dispensers of privileges for which 
they have not asked anything in return. Lord 
Macartney was doubtless pleased and surprised at 
the reception which he met with at the hands of 
the " Son of Heaven," and he was not inclined to 
observe too closely the political conduct of his enter- 
tainers. He was received as an envoy from a 
superior Tributary State, and he was treated as 
such ; and all that he succeeded in exacting from 
the Government was a permission that his country- 
men might trade at Canton on sufferance, so long as 
they obeyed the orders of the authorities. Under 
the circumstances it was quite impossible that he 
should have gained any diplomatic success. Con- 
cessions are only to be obtained from the Chinese 
by successes in the field, or by such a display of 
power as would command success ; Lord Macartney 
had neither of these sources of authority at his back, 
and the result which followed was inevitable. 

In 1796 Ch'ienlung abdicated in favour of his son 
Chiach'ing, and three years later (February 8, 1799) / 7 ^ 
be became a "guest in heaven." The native historians 
state with justice that during the sixty years of his 
reign the Empire reached its acme of greatness. From 



1 88 DIPLOMATIC INTERCOURSE WITH CHINA 

the northern steppes of Mongolia to Cochin China, 
and from Formosa to Nepal, the Chinese armies had 
fought and conquered. Upwards of four hundred 
million of the human race had obeyed the commands 
of the great Emperor, and in no instance had his foes 
been able to inflict more than a temporary defeat 
upon his troops. 




VII 



THE REIGN OF CHIACH ING, AND THE FIRST YEARS 
OF HIS SUCCESSOR 



To the splendid heritage bequeathed by Ch'ienlung 
his son Chiach'ing succeeded, and this change at once 
produced unfortunate results. The late sovereign was 
to his successor as Hyperion to a satyr ; the gracious 
presence, courteous manner, and marked ability which 
belonged to Ch'ienlung were exchanged for churlish 
conduct, a sordid disposition, and an uncouth bear- 
ing in the case of Chiach'ing. The reins of Empire, 
which for sixty years had been guided by the judicious 
hands of the father, were no sooner seized upon by 
his degenerate son than the forces of disorder and 
riot began to make themselves felt. 

It is a current belief in China, as in many other 

lands, that the appearance of a comet forebodes ill to 

the ruling house, and history tells us that, during 

the year in which Chiach'ing ascended the throne, a 

" broom-tailed star " appeared in the west, and, if we 

are to believe their records, remained visible for 

twelve months. Such beliefs as this, have a way of 

bringing about their own fulfilment, and it is possible 

189 



190 THE REIGN OF CHIACH'iNG 

that the leaders of the "White Lily" Sect took 
advantage of this sign in the sky to raise the 
standard of revolt. This society like all similar 
Associations in China, began as a purely philanthropic 
ihstitution, intended for the benefit of the sick and 
the distressed. By degrees more ambitious designs 
attracted the energies of the leaders, and, on the ready 
eitcuse of friction with the local authorities, a general 
revolt broke out almost simultaneously in the provinces 
of Honan, Shensi, Kansu, and Szech'uan, in which 
last territory the ranks of the society were largely 
recruited from the disbanded soldiers of the Nepal 
campaign. The struggle was long and fierce, and 
it is said that, in one province alone, between twenty 
and thirty thousand members of the incriminated 
society were put to death, while the Imperial 
Treasury was the poorer by 100,000,000 taels at 
the close of the civil war. 

A notable feature of this uprising and a marked 
evidence of the unpopularity of Chiach'ing was the 
fact that as part of the movement two attempts were 
publicly made to assassinate the Emperor, one in the 
streets of Peking, and the other in the private 
apartments of the Imperial Palace. In both cases 
Chiach'ing was saved by the courage of others rather 
than by his own valour. In the first instance the 
guards attached to his person, with the help of the 
people in the street, prevented the assassins from 
carrying out their fell intent, and on the other 
occasion his preservation was entirely due to the 
presence of mind and courage of Prince Mienning 
his second son, who subsequently succeeded him as 



WOULD-BE ASSASSINS I9I 

the Emperor Taokwang. In this latter instance the 
assassins forced their way into the Imperial precincts 
intent on finding their victim, who, according to some 
accounts, was not at the moment in the palace. But 
however that may be, Prince Mienning shot two of 
the would-be assassins, while a relative, who happened 
to be with him, accounted for a third. Chiach'ing's 
own description of the occurrence is as follows : 
"Suddenly on the 15th of the 9th moon, rebellion 
arose under my own arm. ... A banditti of upwards 
of seventy men of the Sect T'ienli violated the pro- 
hibited gate [of the palace] ; they wounded the 
guard and rushed into the inner palace. Four were 
seized and bound ; three others ascended the wall 
with a flag. My Imperial second son seized a match- 
lock and shot two of them ; my nephew killed the 
third. For this deliverance I am indebted to the 
energies of my second son." 

It might have been thought that as Chiach'ing had 
so signally failed in securing the regard of his own 
countrymen he might have sought the alliance of 
foreigners. But he was even less in sympathy with 
these than with the Changs and Lis of the Middle 
Kingdom. The missionaries to whom his father had 
shown respect and kindliness, were dismissed from 
the Imperial presence; Father Amiot, who had 
resided in Peking for thirty years, was expelled 
from the capital, and the traders of Canton were 
made pointedly conscious that the central power 
was against them. An overbearing attitude was 
adopted towards Europeans generally, and no velvet 
glove concealed the mailed fist of the Emperor, 



192 THE REIGN OF CHIACH'iNG 

except on occasions when, with that curious mixture 
of arrogance and suppHancy, his representatives 
besought the help of Enghsh seamen against their 
domestic enemies. The southern coasts of China 
have ahvays been the congenial haunts of pirates. 
The numberless inlets and countless islands which 
line the coast provide convenient and safe posts front 
which to watch for prey or to escape from pursuers. 
It will be remembered that Koxinga and his son 
practically held possession of the southern seaboard 
of the Empire for a considerable period of years, 
and under the unsympathetic rule of Chiach'ing a 
successor to these leaders appeared in the person of 
one Ch'ai who harassed the native shipping and even 
ventured to try conclusions with English vessels. 
Occasionally he attacked, by mistake, boats of British 
men-of-war, and in one case actually threw a large 
fishing net over the crew and boat of H.M.S. Dover. 
The boat was at anchor at the time and the crew 
were asleep, but aroused by the onslaught they drew 
their cutlasses, disentangled themselves from the 
meshes of the net, and promptly put the pirates 
to flight. Such outrages did not disturb the official 
conscience of his mandarins, but an event happened 
shortly afterwards which as an insult to the Empire 
roused even the dull sense of honour possessed by 
the authorities. The time had arrived for the pay- 
ment of the Siamese tribute, and, as the cargo repre- 
sented by this act of fealty was known to be a rich 
one, the pirates prepared to attack the vessels, and to 
lay violent hands on the presents intended for the 
Imperial use. The prospect of this robbery touched 



CHINA APPEALS FOR HELP 1 93 

the Imperial dignity, and a request was made to the 
EngHsh at Canton that they would fit out a vessel to 
save the Siamese fleet from the fate intended for it 
The English consented, and a small though fit crew 
manned the Meratry for the venture. The result was 
eminently successful. The pirate fleet was scattered 
to the four winds of heaven, and the Siamese tribute 
was carried safely to Peking. 

This is the first but by no means the only instance 
in which English courage has saved Chinese hoonur. 
The process has since been constantly repeated, 
notably in the case of the T'aip'ing Rebellion, the 
suppression of which was entirely due to the help 
afforded by England to the Imperial forces. The 
Chinese plume themselves on being a proud nation, 
but when danger threatens they descend with agility 
from their pedestal, and show an apt facility of falling 
on their knees. One remarkable instance of this 
curious want of self-respect was furnished during 
the war of 1857, when Yeh, while defending Canton 
against the English, had the craven impertinence to 
ask help from his foes to suppress a native rising 
against his rule. 

But though glad of help from English ships, the 
increase in the number of men-of-war visiting Canton 
produced a disturbing influence on the minds of 
Chiach'ing and his followers. The war in Europe 
made it increasingly necessary that the English 
men-of-war should be available for the protection of 
British trade, and the seizure of Macao in 1802, and 
again in 181 3, to prevent the settlement from falling 
into the hands of the French, produced violent 

14 



194 THE REIGN OF CHIACH ING 

remonstrances from the mandarins accompanied by- 
threats that the trade of Canton should be stopped 
if the port were not evacuated. The same hostile 
spirit marked the few communications which passed 
between Peking and London during this period. A 
present which was sent to an official who had been 
civil in his dealings with Lord Macartney was 
returned with scant courtesy, and a letter, 
addressed by Chiach'ing to George III., was marked 
by all the stilted arrogance common to the Chinese. 
" Your Majesty's Kingdom," wrote the Emperor, " is 
at a remote distance beyond the seas, but is obser- 
vant of its duties and obedient to our laws, beholding 
from afar the glory of our Empire, and respectfully 
admiring the perfection of our government. Your 
Majesty has despatched messengers with letters 
for our perusal ; we find that they are dictated by 
appropriate sentiments of esteem and veneration ; 
and being therefore inclined to fulfil the wishes of 
Your Majesty, we have determined to accept the 
whole of the accompanying offering. With regard 
to those of Your Majesty's subjects who for a long 
course of years have been in the habit of trading with 
our Empire, we must observe to you that our 
Celestial Government regards all persons and nations 
with eyes of charity and benevolence, and always 
treats and considers your subjects with the utmost 
indulgence and affection ; on their account, therefore, 
there can be no place or occasion for the exertions of 
Your Majesty's Government." 

Being of very inferior ability to his father 
Chiach'ing had none of the breadth of mind which 



RUSSIA AND THE k'ot'oW I95 

suggested to Ch'ienlung the toleration which distin- 
guished that Emperor's reign. Being uncertain of 
the respect of those about him, he was more puncti- 
Hous as to outward forms and ceremonies. A lack of 
the spirit of veneration is often supplied by additional 
scrupulousness about the minutiae of ritual. Ch'ien- 
lung had looked upon the k'ot'ow as an obeisance 
commonly due to him, but in receiving Lord 
Macartney's mission he was wise enough to recog- 
nise that it might be given up without any loss of 
dignity on his part. His son had no such width of 
view and insisted that any one entering his presence, 
whether a native or a foreigner, should perform that 
particular sort of debasement before his throne. His 
persistence in this matter wrecked two embassies to 
his Court. In 1805 a Russian Embassy, under Count 
Goloyken, travelled overland on the way to Peking, 
and reached the Great Wall in due course. Here the 
Count was met by emissaries from Chiach'ing who 
informed him that unless he would consent to 
perform the k'ot'ow when admitted to Imperial 
audiences he might save himself the trouble of 
coming any further. The Ambassador firmly refused 
so to degrade himself, and as the only way out of the 
deadlock was to return from whence he came, he 
turned his camels' heads round, and disappeared 
across the desert. Eleven years later George III., of 
pious memory, determined to send a second envoy 
to renew the negotiations opened by Lord Macart- 
ney. For this important mission Lord Amherst, who 
had distinguished himself at many courts, was chosen 
as the King's representative. Without adventure he 



196 THE REIGN OF CHIACH'iNG 

arrived at Tientsin, where he was met by Commis- 
sioners who, while preserving a semblance of courtesy, 
began at once to raise the question of the k'ot'ow. 
Day after day with wearisome reiteration they 
brought forward the same demands, supported by 
what they were good enough to call arguments, and 
were answered in the same words based on the same 
reasons. At one time it looked as though Lord 
Amherst's fate was to have been that of Count 
Goloyken. But for some reason, possibly the pros- 
pect of receiving presents similar to those brought by 
Lord Macartney, Chiach'ing was evidently desirous 
that the Ambassador should be admitted into his 
presence, and hence, though Lord Amherst was firm 
on the point in dispute, he was allowed to proceed to 
Tungchow, within twelve miles of the capital. Here 
two men of superior rank and condition met him and 
at once urged him to consent to what they called the 
national custom. Lord Amherst repeated the pro- 
position made by Lord Macartney, that if a manda- 
rin of equal rank with himself would k'ot'ow to a 
portrait of George III. he would do likewise in the 
presence of Chiach'ing. This concession was de- 
clined, and Lord Amherst next proposed that he 
should bow low nine times before the Emperor, while 
the courtiers performed the nine prostrations of the 
k'ot'ow. This also was declared to be inadmissible, 
and the prospect before the mission became black 
indeed. To Lord Amherst's surprise, however, Duke 
Ho, the Chief Commissioner, informed him that the 
Emperor had given orders for the mission to be 
brought to Yuan-ming-yuan on the following day. 



RUDE TREATMENT OF LORD AMHERST 1 9/ 

The journey, barely more than twenty miles, might 
well have been made within the hours of daylight, 
even at a foot's pace. But as if to aggravate the 
discomfort of the Ambassador, Ho arranged that the 
cavalcade should start at five o'clock in the evening, 
with the result that it did not arrive at Yuan-ming- 
yuan until daylight on the next morning. While 
weary and worn with this tedious and untimely 
journey, the Ambassador and his suite were hustled 
into a small room where they were subjected to the 
inquisitive scrutiny of people of all ranks, who treated 
them, in the words of Mr. Ellis, the historian of the 
Mission, with " brutal rudeness and an insulting 
demeanour." While annoyed by these insults Lord 
Amherst was still further disturbed by the arrival of 
Duke Ho, who brought a message from the Emperor 
to say that he desired to see the Ambassador at once. 
Lord Amherst expostulated against this discourteous 
demand, and pleaded his fatigue and the non-arrival 
of his Court attire. Ho, however, was doubly and 
anxiously persistent, and even attempted, on one 
occasion, to force the Ambassador into the Emperor's 
presence. This impertinence was resented by Lord 
Amherst who sent a respectful message to Chiach'ing, 
informing him of the circumstances of the case, and 
begging to be allowed time to recover from his 
fatigue before presenting himself in the august pre- 
sence. A peremptory answer was returned to this 
very reasonable request, ordering the Ambassador at 
once to set out for Tungchow, en route to Canton. No 
option was allowed him, and he, therefore, shook the 
dustof Pekingoffhisfeet,and turned his face southward. 



198 THE REIGN OF CHIACH^ING 

The Story is a disgraceful one, and it is only due 
to Chiach'ing to say that his natural discourtesy 
towards foreigners was aggravated in this case by the 
deceptions practised upon him by his Ministers. 
According to an Imperial Edict, published after Lord 
Amherst's departure, it appears that Duke Ho had 
reported to his master from Tungchow that " the 
English tribute bearer was daily practising the cere- 
mony [of k'ot'ow], and was manifesting the highest 
possible respect and veneration." It is also stated 
on the Imperial word that Ho had concealed the fact 
that Lord Amherst declined the audience owing to 
fatigue after his journey, and represented him as 
being contumacious. For these offences Duke Ho 
was fined five years' salary, and was stripped of his 
yellow jacket. The further sentence that he should 
be deprived of all his offices, the Emperor was 
graciously pleased to remit in consideration of his 
many services. According to the Emperor, Ho, with 
his companion Mu, were overcome with remorse at 
the part they had played, and when introduced into 
the Imperial presence they made full confession, 
" pulling off their caps and dashing their heads 
against the ground." It is possible that this demon- 
strative contrition may have had the effect of 
mitigating the Imperial wrath. 

Another and a remarkable Englishman suffered at 
about the same time a somewhat similar rebuff on 
the part of the Celestials. Manning, who was a con- 
siderable Chinese scholar, arrived at Canton in 18 14 
inspired by the vain hope that his knowledge of the 
language, and sympathy with the people, would gain 



A REPROVING STATESMAN 1 99 

him favour in their eyes. He was soon undeceived, 
and, disheartened with his failure, left Canton for 
India whence he travelled into Tibet. Here better 
fortune attended him. He gained admission into 
Lhasa, and thus secured the distinction of being the 
only Englishman who has ever entered the portals of 
that sacred city. 

The remaining years of Chiach'ing were few and 
evil, and in 1820 at the age of sixty-one death over- 
took him. When quite a lad he showed some literary 
talent and we are told that when thirteen years of 
age on the occasion of his father, Ch'ienlung, examin- 
ing him in the hall of Confucius, " the verses that 
might be expected from a boy of such an age were 
duly composed." But in after life all taste for litera- 
ture disappeared and he found his principal amuse- 
ment in the society of actors. Immediately after the 
morning Audience it was his wont to retire to his 
private apartments where, in the company of come- 
dians, he sang and played. It is even said that when 
he went to offer the sacred sacrifices to Heaven and 
Earth it was his practice to take some of his favourites 
with him. With the courage which either makes or 
mars a Chinese statesman the Minister Sung took 
upon himself the invidious task of remonstrating 
with his liege lord on the impropriety of these habits. 
This reproval instead of producing the desired result 
only irritated Chiach'ing, who, however, was quite 
unable to deny the allegations contained in the 
accusing memorial. In answer to a summons calling 
on him to appear before his angry master. Sung 
presented himself on his knees, trembling. After 



200 THE REIGN OF CHIACH'iNG 

some words of reproof Chiach'ing asked the Minister 
what he deserved for the crime of inculpating the 
Son of Heaven. "Quartering," was the answer. After 
an interval which must have contained anxious mo- 
ments for Sung the same question was repeated and 
the Minister regarding the repetition as a sign of 
miitigating wrath replied, " Let me be beheaded." 
Yet a third time the question was put, " Let me 
be strangled," was the answer. At these words Sung 
was dismissed from the audience chamber, and the 
next day received the appointment of Governor of 
the Province of Hi, where, in the opinion of his 
Imperial master, he would be unable to pry into the 
amusements of the palace, and would at the same 
time be powerless to plead that the Emperor had 
trampled on the traditional rights of Ministers to 
expostulate with erring sovereigns. 

Chiach'ing was of an indolent disposition, and was 
incapable of opposing the more violent spirits who 
disturbed the peace of the Empire during the quarter 
of a century that he sat on the throne. The faults 
of his father were exaggerated in him, and he had 
none of those virtues which added lustre to the long 
reign of Ch'ienlung. It is customary for an Emperor 
on ascending the throne to publish an Edict con- 
taining an obituary notice of his predecessor. The 
statements contained in such documents are probably 
no truer than epitaphs generally are, but it is only 
fair to Chiach'ing that we should glance at the other 
side of the shield and should listen to what his son, 
Taokwang, who saved his life on the occasion of the 
attack of his sacred person in the palace, has to say 



A FILIAL EULOGY 201 

on the behalf of his august father. " His late 
Majesty," wrote Taokwang, " who has now gone the 
great journey, governed all under Heaven's canopy 
during twenty -five years, exercising the utmost 
caution and industry. Nor evening nor morning was 
he ever idle. He assiduously aimed at the best pos- 
sible rule, and hence his government was excellent 
and illustrious ; the Court and the country felt the 
deepest reverence for him, and the stillness of pro- 
found awe. A benevolent heart, and a benevolent 
administration were universally diffused ; in China 
proper, as well as beyond it, order and tranquillity 
prevailed, and the tens of thousands of common 
people were all happy. But in the midst of the 
hope that this glorious reign would be long pro- 
tracted, and the help of Heaven would be received 
many days, unexpectedly, on descending to bless by 
his Majesty's presence Lwanyang [in Tartary], the 
Dragon Charioteer (the holy Emperor) became a 
guest on high " ! 

In 1820 the Emperor Taokwang ascended the 
Throne in pursuance of the will of his father, who to 
his dying day never forgot that he owed the seven 
last years of his life to Mienning's courage and skill. 
That prince, who adopted the title of Taokwang, was 
born in 1781, and was therefore thirty-nine years 
of age when he was proclaimed Emperor. Though 
a favourite of his father he was not a persona grata 
with the ladies of the harem, more especially with 
the concubine who had succeeded his mother in the 
Imperial dignity. During the lifetime of his mother 
there had been much ill-blood between these two 



202 THE REIGN OF CHTACH'iNG 

ladies, and the first Empress is said to have died 
in a paroxysm of rage, caused by the aggressive 
conduct of her successor, who revenged herself on 
Prince Mienning for the many slights which she had 
endured, by imposing on him all the indignities which 
it was in her power to inflict. 

In early life Taokwang had been passionately 
devoted to martial exercises, in pursuit of which he is 
said to have fortified his muscles by taking certain 
strengthening medicines, which were reputed to 
have destroyed his teeth and so to have given to 
his jaw the peculiar character which it possessed. In 
figure he was tall, lank, and hollow-cheeked, and of 
a dark complexion. His habits were quiet and 
retired, and he was not credited with any great 
talent for business. In after life, however, he proved 
himself quite capable of holding his own with his 
Ministers. One of his first acts showed his disap- 
proval of the policy of his father, of whose wisdom 
he had proclaimed himself such an ardent admirer in 
his Edicts. He recalled Sung from his banishment 
in Hi, and gave notice to quit to the comedians and 
others to whom Chiach'ing had given such a hos- 
pitable welcome in the palace. The members of his 
father's harem were also sent home to their relatives, 
and his wife was proclaimed Empress. 

Unfortunately " the evil that men do lives after 
them," and the result of Chiach'ing's lax and dis- 
creditable rule was to leave a heritage of woe to his 
successor. Pestilence, famine, and war dogged 
Taokwang's footsteps, and no more uneasy head 
ever wore a crown than his. The feeble hand of his 



RUSSIAN COLLEGE AT PEKING 203 

predecessor had so weakened the authority of the 
law that stringent measures had to be adopted for 
the preservation of peace and order. The same 
spirit of misrule which he found prevailing in the 
provinces had extended beyond the frontier into 
those regions of Mongolia where K'anghsi had fought 
and conquered. Here the standard of revolt was 
raised by a chieftain named Jehangir, in the neigh- 
bourhood of Kashgar, where recruits, tempted by the 
reported weakness of the Chinese power, flocked 
readily to his ranks. At first all went well with the 
rebel, who took and occupied Kashgar, putting the 
Chinese garrison to the sword. But, as so often had 
happened in Chinese campaigns in Central Asia, the 
weight of men and steady perseverance of the 
Celestials ultimately carried the day, and Jehangir 
was taken prisoner and sent to Peking. There the 
traditional fate of all such rebels overtook him, and 
he was hanged, drawn, and quartered. 

It will be remembered that during the reign of 
K'anghsi the Russian garrison of Albazin had been 
brought to Peking as prisoners, and had there 
remained living among the natives of the capital as 
fellow-citizens. At stated intervals the Czar's Govern- 
ment had been in the habit of sending unofficial 
envoys with sums of money for the maintenance of 
these colonists. A communication was in this way 
periodically kept up between these two Empires, and 
was still further fostered by the establishment by 
Treaty (1728) of a Russian college at Peking, where 
students studied for ten years the Chinese and 
Manchu languages. In the first year of Taokwang's 



204 THE REIGN OF CHIACH ING 

accession a certain Timkowski arrived at Peking on 
this eleemosynary mission, and though the name of 
foreigner stank in the nostrils of Taokwang, he was 
allowed to remain until he had fulfilled his charitable 
duties. The same tolerance, however, was not ex- 
tended to the Portuguese officials employed in the 
Astronomical Department at Peking, who, though 
they had been allowed to remain by Chiach'ing, were 
summarily dismissed by his successor. 

Meanwhile, in that hotbed of rebellion, the island 
of Formosa, disorders broke out and were quelled, 
though with difficulty, partly by crushing cruelty and 
partly by the seductive lure of official bribery. By 
Chinese statesmen the islands and outlying districts 
of the Empire are comparatively lightly esteemed, 
and it is only when the soil of the Eighteen Provinces 
of China Proper is tampered with that their patriot- 
5sm is aroused. It required no great effort to hand 
over Formosa and the Pescadores to Japan after the 
recent war, but it might fairly be questioned whether 
they would not have fought to the death for a single 
province of the sacred eighteen. So it was on this 
occasion, and both in Formosa and Hainan, where 
there were simultaneous outbreaks, the Imperial 
commanders patched up a peace without troubling 
themselves to attempt to lay the foundations of any 
lasting tranquillity. But a rising among the Miaotzu 
tribes which occurred about the same time was a 
very different matter. The Viceroy of the province 
of Kwangtung was sent against them, and when he 
failed through incompetence and cowardice, Hsi An, 
Taokwang's father-in-law, was ordered to take the 



A VICIOUS PRINCE 20$ 

field. Fortunately for this chieftain, who neither in 
a public nor private capacity bore a good character, 
he was given the immediate command of Hunan 
troops, the best fighting material in China. With 
these soldiers he was successful. He harried the 
Miaotzu, burnt their villages, and drove the survivors 
to the mountain tops. The tribes resisted for a time, 
but at last made their submission, and received from 
the hands of the conquerors the bitter terms which 
are commonly meted out to defeated rebels in 
Oriental lands. 

Taokwang was no more fortunate in his private 
life than he was In his public career. The news of 
the outbreaks above mentioned reached him at a 
time when he was suffering from severe domestic 
bereavement. In 183 1 he had to mourn the loss of 
both his Empress and his only son. Accounts differ 
as to how the latter met his end. That he was a 
debauched and vicious youth all authorities agree In 
affirming, and while by some it is said that his death 
was due to opium smoking, it is also commonly 
reported that he received his deathblow at the hand 
of his father who, enraged at his misconduct, raised 
his fist against him. 

During these and other absorbing anxieties Tao- 
kwang had little time to pay any attention to the 
English residents at Canton. They were allowed to 
pursue the somewhat uneven tenor of their way 
without incurring any additional penalties from 
Peking. All their communications with the authori- 
ties passed through the hands of a committee of 
native merchants, known as the Cohong, and any 



2o6 THE REIGN OF CHIACH'iNG 

written statement was on compulsion made in the 
form of a petition. Ladies were forbidden to reside 
in the settlement, and a permit, which cost from 
seventy to a hundred pounds, was necessary to 
enable a merchant to visit his family at Macao, the 
nearest place where it was possible for ladies and 
children to live. Notwithstanding these and count- 
less other disabilities, the number of resident 
merchants steadily increased, and the shipping 
returns went up with corresponding certainty. It 
was plain, therefore, that the growing importance of 
the port would soon render it impossible that the 
existing state of things could be endured much 
longer, and an opportunity shortly presented itself 
of putting matters on a more satisfactory footing. 




VIII 

FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

The Charter of the East India Company, which 
had been granted by Charles I., was about to expire 
in April, 1834. The importance of the trade made 
it impolitic to renew the charter, and the Govern- 
ment therefore determined to take over the adminis- 
tration of affairs at Canton. The old order of things 
must, they felt, pass away, and they decided to 
emphasise this change by appointing a representative 
who, it was hoped, would be able to deal directly 
with the highest provincial authorities. Lord Napier 
was chosen for this very difficult post, and received 
a commission from the King dated Brighton, 
December 10, 1833, in which his " loyalty, integrity, 
and skill " were justly lauded. With Lord Napier 
were associated two officials as sub-commissioners. 
Lord Napier's instructions, which were drafted by 
Lord Palmerston, were precise. " Your lordship," so 
they ran, " will announce your arrival at Canton by 
letters to the Viceroy. In addition to the duty of 
protecting and fostering trade at Canton, it will be 

one of your principal objects to ascertain whether it 

207 



208 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

may not be practicable to extend that trade to other 
parts of the Chinese dominions. It is obvious that 
with a view to the attainment of this object the 
estabhshment of direct communication with the 
Court of Peking would be most desirable." 

Lord Napier's course was therefore laid plainly 
before him, and on arriving on the China coast he 
proceeded at once direct to Canton. At this act of 
presumption, as it was described, the mandarins were 
furious, and so serious a view did the Superintendent 
of Customs take of it, that he proposed to the 
Viceroy that the foreign trade of the port should be 
suspended in consequence. The Viceroy on his part 
refused to receive Lord Napier's letter announcing 
his arrival, and justified his conduct by stating that 
the great Ministers of the Empire were forbidden 
to hold communication with barbarians except on 
certain specified subjects. Hitherto, so argued the 
officials, the leading Englishman had been a Taipan, 
or head merchant, and there never had been such a 
thing as a correspondence to and fro with a " Bar- 
barian Eye " (Minister). The attitude thus assumed 
by the local authorities was highly commended by 
the Viceroy, who considered that it manifested "a 
profound knowledge of the great principles of 
dignity." 

The juncture at which Lord Napier arrived was an 
unfortunate one. The Government had been much 
alarmed at the drain of silver consequent on the 
foreign trade, more especially in opium, and a report 
had lately been made to the throne that 60,000,000 
taels were annually lost to the Empire by the foreign 



OPPOSITION TO OPIUM 



209 



connection. Already there had grown up a pro- 
nounced opposition to the opium trade on the part of 




OPIUM SMOKERS. 



some of the highest officials, and during the reign of 
Chiach'ing more than one memorial had been pre- 
sented to the throne proclaiming the evils which 

15 



2IO FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

were supposed to result from the use of the drug. 
But however strong the feelings of individuals on the 
subject might be, interests were at work which mili- 
tated against any direct action towards prohibiting 
the traffic. The use of the pipe had spread to almost 
every yamen in the Empire, and already large areas 
of the country were devoted to the cultivation of the 
poppy. In the province of Yunnan several thousands 
of chests of opium were produced annually, and in 
other provinces vast tracts were sown with poppy 
seeds. The drug had thus taken a hold upon the 
nation, and it moderates our views as to the injurious 
nature of opium when we observe that after so many 
years the evils arising from it are so difficult to trace. 
But at the time when the Charter of the East India 
Company was abolished, there was another and a 
stronger reason why the local authorities at Canton 
and elsewhere were either openly or privately in 
favour of the continuance of the traffic. During the 
reign of Chiach'ing opium was recognised as an 
article of trade, and paid duty at the rate of three 
taels per hundred catties (one catty equals \\ lb.). 

Subsequently, however, the trade had been declared 
illegal, and as it was plainly impossible to prevent the 
importation of the drug, a wide door was opened for 
the energy and daring of smugglers. These men were 
tacitly recognised by the local mandarins, who drew 
large though irregular incomes in return for their 
benevolent inaction. The natural result followed. 
While occasional censors exposed possible and im- 
possible evils of opium smoking, and while the 
Emperor fulminated Edicts against the practice, the 



TYRANNY AT CANTON 211 

officials throughout the country, from the highest to 
the lowest, countenanced the importation of the 
" foreign dirt " ; and in inland districts, where it was 
difficult to obtain supplies from the coast, native 
farmers profitably supplied the officials and people 
with the means of indulging in the pipe. 

But though these influences led, in the face of 
Imperial Edicts, to a continuance of the opium traffic, 
the supercilious conceit of the Government induced 
them to put a stop to the legitimate trade of the port 
as a protest against what they were good enough to 
call the highly improper conduct of Lord Napier in 
forcing his way to Canton without having given due 
notice of his approach. The Minister and his country- 
men were, in consequence, kept virtually prisoners 
within the limits of the foreign settlement. The 
native servants in their employ deserted them, and 
the boatmen refused to carry either them or their 
goods. In this way matters came to a deadlock, and 
the Viceroy had the further insolence to issue a notice 
containing a series of regulations designed for the 
management of the " Outer Barbarians." Among 
these ordinances was one forbidding ships of war to 
sail into the inner seas of the Empire ; another pro- 
hibited foreigners from " stealthily transporting 
muskets and cannon, or clandestinely bringing up 
foreign women or foreign sailors " ; and yet another 
proclaimed that idly rambling about beyond the 
limits of the settlement could not be allowed for a 
moment. To this and other such documents Lord 
Napier deemed it advisable to utter a counter blast, 
and in a public notice to the Chinese merchants he 



212 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

wrote, " The Merchants of Great Britain wish to trade 
with all China on principles of mutual benefit ; they 
will never relax in their exertions till they gain the 
point of equal importance to both countries, and the 
Viceroy will find it as easy to stop the current of the 
Canton river as to carry into effect the insane deter- 
minations of the Hong." 

In this stress of circumstances and anxieties Lord 
Napier's health most unfortunately gave way, and he 
retired to Macao for rest and further medical advice. 
His departure from Canton was regarded as a triumph 
by the mandarins, who at once signalised the event 
by removing the embargo on trade. Unfortunately 
the change from Canton to Macao was too late to 
save Lord Napier's life, and he died there on October 
II, 1834. Meanwhile the British merchants at 
Canton had presented a petition to the British 
Government praying that steps might be taken 
effectively to open the Chinese Empire to trade, 
and to place the foreign communities on terms of 
equality with the merchants of the country. This 
document was firmly and judiciously worded. The 
writers recognised as clearly as we do the pre- 
posterous pretensions of the Chinese Government, 
and even more clearly than we always have done, 
the folly of attempting to propitiate the officials by 
yielding to their demands. 

In response to this document Captain Elliot was 
appointed in 1836 to take up the duties vacated by 
the death of Lord Napier. On arriving at Macao he 
communicated with the Governor of Canton an- 
nouncing his arrival, and asking for the usual permit 



CHINESE IMPERTINENCE 21 3 

for admission to the provincial capital. But though 
the mandarins readily gave this permission, as they 
fully recognised the adva^ntage of having a repre- 
sentative of the merchants with whom they could 
negotiate, they were yet in no way disposed to recog- 
nise Captain Elliot as anything more than a superior 
supercargo, and chose to insist that all communica- 
tions from him should be in the form of Pin^ or 
petitions. This claim was clearly inadmissible, and 
as Captain Elliot insisted on his right to use the 
forms commonly employed among civilised nations, 
matters came once more to a deadlock. Seeing that 
nothing would be gained by remaining at Canton, 
Captain Elliot retired to Macao ; all trade was then 
stopped, and the merchants who chose to remain in 
the settlement were confined within its limits. 

Meanwhile a brisk discussion was carried on in the 
pages of the Peking Gazette on the vexed question of 
the Opium Trade. It was strongly held that it was 
impossible to prevent the importation of the drug, and 
that an advantage would be derived on all sides by 
legalising the traffic. The evils of smuggling were 
further enlarged upon by these advocates, and, as was 
afterwards argued by Lord Elgin when making the 
treaty of 1858, it was put forward that it would be far 
better to place the trade under official control than 
that it should be carried on by illicit means amid 
scenes of violence and strife. The opponents of 
this statesmanlike suggestion broke out into wild 
oratory against the evils of the habit, and affirmed 
that the English had deliberately introduced the 
" foreign dirt " into the country for the purpose of so 



214 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

debilitating the people as to leave them incapable of 
resisting the demands of the " Outer Barbarians." 
This line of argument was only another version of a 
remark made by the Emperor K'anghsi long before 
the question of opium had arisen, namely, that " there 
was cause for apprehension lest, in the centuries or 
millenniums to come, China may be endangered by 
collisions with the various nations of the West who 
come hither from beyond the seas." 

The Opium Question was, as events fully demon- 
strated, only used by the officials as a convenient 
weapon with which to attack the foreigner. The 
refusal of the Governor to receive communications 
from Captain Elliot except in the form of petitions ; 
the ridiculous regulations which he laid down for the 
management of the merchants at Canton ; and the 
sumptuary laws which it was attempted to enact for 
their guidance — all point to the real object of the 
mandarins, which was to drive the obnoxious foreigner 
out of the country. There was something particu- 
larly hypocritical in the horror professed by the man- 
darins at the continuance of the opium traffic, when 
we call to mind that along the entire coast-line of 
China from Canton to Tientsin the drug was smuggled 
openly by the officials and others ; and that it was 
only in Canton and the neighbourhood that any 
attempt was ever made to check the practice. The 
mandarins made much of the number of foreign 
schooners which landed opium along the coast. But 
these compared with the native customs cruisers and 
other vessels, which performed the same service, were 
in number as one to many thousands. While the 



INSINCERE ANTI-OPIUMISTS 21 5 

Governor at Canton was professing righteous indig- 
nation at the villany of the EngHsh opium traders it 
was an open secret that his own son was daily smug- 
gling cargoes in official vessels within his father's 
jurisdiction. Our sympathy with the protestors is 
seriously diminished by this evident insincerity, and 
by the consideration that, though, according to them, 
the practice of opium smoking had become general 
throughout the Empire, the energy of the merchants, 
the scholarship of the Litei^ati^ and the industry of 
the people, remained unabated. As we have already 
seen Taokwang's son was a habitual opium smoker, 
and it would have been more to the purpose if, 
instead of emptying all the vials of his wrath on the 
heads of the foreigners, the Emperor had employed 
real and vigorous measures against the practice which 
he denounced, against the smuggling of the drug by 
natives, and against the cultivation of the poppy 
which was already largely engaging the attention of 
native farmers. 

It is impossible under the circumstances to regard 
the professions of the anti-opium Chinese as being 
genuine, and there can be no doubt that the Govern- 
ment deliberately chose to make a stalking horse 
of the trade for the purpose of effectively exciting 
popular feeling against foreigners. In pursuance of 
this policy, Taokwang appointed Commissioner Lin 
to proceed to Canton with orders to legislate on all 
questions in dispute between the local officials and 
the " Outer Barbarians." Within a week of his arrival, 
Lin, with that impetuosity which distinguished him, 
issued a peremptory order to the foreign merchants. 



2l6 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

over whom he had of course no control, charging 
them to deliver up all the opium in their possession. 
So powerless were the traders, and so long had they 
been habituated to the dictatorial and violent methods 
of the Chinese, that they were induced to surrender 
over a thousand chests of the drug, in response to 
the Emperor's demand. This quantity was promptly 
declared to be insufficient by the Commissioner, who, 
at the same time, sent a message to Mr. Dent, one of 
the leading merchants, asking him to meet him for 
consultation at one of the city gates. Former expe- 
rience had shown that to yield to such an invitation 
was simply to place the guest in the hands of the 
mandarins as a prisoner and a hostage, and Mr. 
Dent, therefore, naturally declined to venture into Lin's 
clutches unless that official would give him a written 
guarantee that he would be allowed to return at 
pleasure to the settlement. Fortunately the Com- 
missioner had sufficient honesty to decline to pledge 
his word with the deliberate intention of breaking it, 
and Mr. Dent refused to place himself in a position 
of so much danger. Although it was now plainly 
impossible that the relations between the two coun- 
tries could be continued on peaceable lines. Captain 
Elliot returned to Canton in the vain hope of being 
able to arrange a modus vivendi. His re-appearance 
on the scene caused much excitement among the 
officials, and orders were instantly given to beleaguer 
the foreign settlement. The narrow lanes and out- 
lets leading into the city were walled up ; all com- 
munication with the outer world on the land side was 
cut off; and steps were taken to prevent foreign 



lin's conditions 217 

vessels from leaving the anchorage. The position 
was one which might well have been brought to a 
head by a more determined and resourceful man 
than Captain Elliot, to whom the only remedy which 
presented itself was that of yielding to the Chinese 
demands. With unfortunate acquiescence he issued 
a proclamation ordering the English merchants to 
deliver up the supplies of opium in their possession. 
Recognising the weakness of the opponent with whom 
he had to deal, Lin had further the progressive 
assurance to publish a notification stating that so 
soon as one fourth of the opium was handed over, 
the servants who had been ordered to desert the 
settlement should be allowed to return to their foreign 
masters ; that when half was given up the passage 
boats should again be made available ; and that when 
three-quarters had been surrendered, trade should be 
resumed. He further had the insolence to threaten 
that if these conditions were not complied with 
within three days the supply of fresh water would 
be cut off, that in yet another three days all food 
would be denied to the merchants, and that the last 
degree of severity would attend a further delay. 

In these circumstances and in obedience to Captain 
Elliot's circular 20,283 chests of the drug were handed 
over to the Chinese authorities by British merchants. 
As long experience has shown, to yield to Chinese 
bluster entails only the advance of still further 
demands, and the infliction of still greater indignities. 
In the present instance Lin rewarded Captain Elliot's 
complacency by claiming the right to punish Euro- 
peans for crimes committed on Chinese soil, and 



2l8 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

expressed the greatest indignation when after a 
sailors' riot in which one or two Chinese lost their 
lives, his demand to have the English disturbers of 
the peace handed over to him was refused. The 
unwarrantable tone which he had taken up from 
the first made it hopeless to attempt to carry on 
relations with him, and he further provoked war by 
calling on his countrymen to arm themselves against 
the foreigners. The inevitable result was not long 
delayed, and on November 3, 1839, a naval engage- 
ment was fought at Chuanpi, in which a number of 
Chinese junks were sunk and destroyed. 

This event in no way shook Lin's faith in himself 
and his countrymen, and with hardened assurance he 
issued a proclamation in which he claimed to possess 
such an intimate knowledge of the divine intentions 
that he was able to announce that the Imperial dy- 
nasty continued to repose under the direct protection 
of Heaven, and that all those who should be presump- 
tuous enough to oppose its will would inevitably be 
overtaken by Celestial vengeance. Events which 
were now hurrying on must have convinced him, if he 
had been capable of reasoning, that at all events the 
god of battles was on the side of the big ships of the 
enemies of his master. But not only had Lin's 
policy been unfortunate in bringing defeats on the 
Chinese but his commercial strategy had had exactly 
the opposite result to that which was intended. 
The destruction of the foreign opium at Canton 
led to a vigorous revival of the trade, smugglers 
multiplied, and the traffic flourished as it had never 
flourished before in spite of the fact that three 



A statesman's career 219 

native victims were sacrificed on the altar of Lin's 
patriotism. 

In the summer of 1841 Sir Gordon Bremer, the 
English Admiral, blockaded Canton, and then sailed 
northwards to attack Tinghai, the chief town on the 
island of Chusan. The result was an engagement 
such as those with which the late war has made 
us familiar. The defence of the fortifications was 
little more than momentary, and under cover of 
night the garrison took to their heels. From Ningpo 
the fleet sailed to Taku at the mouth of the Peiho, 
where Captain Elliot was met by Kishen, the Go- 
vernor-General of Chihli. This mandarin was one 
of the leading officials in the Empire, and his career 
is so suggestive of the vicissitudes which attend 
Oriental administrators that it is worth relating. The 
son of an official who obeyed Ch'ienlung, he was 
given an appointment when barely twenty years of 
age. Seven years later he was made Secretary to 
a provincial Governor ; and at the age of forty he 
was appointed Viceroy of Szech'uan, and in 1830 he 
was promoted to the viceroyalty of the Metropolitan 
province. So far his fortunes had been in the ascen- 
dant, but reverses quickly followed. When, as will be 
shortly seen, Lin was disgraced, Kishen was sent as 
Commissioner to Canton with the additional of^ce 
of Viceroy of the two Kwang provinces. Foreign 
policy has in many cases been the rock upon which 
the careers of Chinese statesmen have been wrecked. 
And it was so with Kishen, who so deeply incurred 
the anger of his Imperial master that he was sent 
in chains to Peking there to answer for his crimes. 



220 FORE>IGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

After a formal trial he was condemned to hard 
labour in the province of Hi, and to the confiscation 
of his property. This last penalty was a cruel 
blow to the offender, for, like many mandarins who 
have been long office-holders, he had great posses- 
sions. Years afterwards the Imperial wrath was so 
far mitigated that a partial pardon was granted to 
him, and he was later appointed to the office of 
Assistant Resident at Yarkand. 

His association with Captain Elliot at Taku was 
the first step towards his fall, although at the moment 
he unquestionably gained a temporary advantage 
over his opponent. The arrival of the fleet at the 
mouth of the Peiho had alarmed the Court, and 
Kishen's first object was to induce Captain Elliot to 
relieve the Imperial fears by returning to Canton. 
With the same mistaken complacency which had 
induced the English Minister to listen to Lin's com- 
mands, he complied on this occasion with Kishen's 
wishes, and without having advanced matters in the 
least degree he agreed to sail southward, and once 
more to discuss negotiations on the familiar ground 
at Canton. There matters had been going from bad 
to worse. Lin had been devoting his energies to 
raising troops and preparing to defend the city 
against all comers. He had issued fiery proclama- 
tions offering liberal rewards for any Englishman 
brought in dead or alive, and for any vessel which 
the troops might chance to capture. A native army 
which had been collected near Macao had been 
attacked and dispersed with ease and rapidity by a 
small British force, and a state of active warfare had 



LIN S FALL 221 

been brought about Such were the results of the 
impertinent bluster with which the now disappointed 
Commissioner had attempted to influence the political 
situation. The news of the existing unfortunate 
state of affairs in the South no sooner reached Peking 
that Taokwang ordered Lin to return to Peking 
" with the speed of flames." As the Emperor wrote, 
and with justice, ''You," he said, addressing Lin, 
" have but dissembled with empty words, and so far 
from having been any help in the affair you have 
caused the waves of confusion to arise, and a thou- 
sand interminable disorders are sprouting ; in fact, 
you have been as if your arms were tied, without 
knowing what to do ; it appears, then, that you are 
no better than a wooden image." 

The change of venue to Canton was at first unpro- 
ductive of any good results in the negotiations. The 
terror which had inclined the Emperor to sanction 
discussions when the British fleet was at the mouth 
of the Peiho changed into bluster and self-sufficiency 
when the whole length of the Empire separated him 
from his hated foes, and it was not until Sir Gordon 
Bremer had taken several forts leading to Canton 
that Kishen at last consented to treat for peace. 
After the manner of all his tribe he yielded at once 
and completely to pressure, and agreed, with protesta- 
tions of sincerity, to accept Captain Elliot's proposals 
for a convention. These were that the Island of 
Hongkong should be ceded to the British crown, that 
an indemnity of six million dollars should be paid in 
consideration of the opium destroyed, that official 
intercourse should be conducted between English and 



222 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

Chinese officials on terms of international equality, 
and that the trade with the British at Canton should 
at once be resumed. It was further agreed that on 
the fulfilment ©f these conditions the Island of 
Chusan and the fort of Chuanpi should be restored 
to China, and that at the same time the English pri- 
soners at Ningpo should be granted their liberty. 
Among these unfortunates was Captain Anstruther, 
R.A., who had been kidnapped at Chusan and carried 
off to Ningpo, where he had been imprisoned in a 
cage. Fortunately these captives were eventually 
released, though the treaty which had been agreed to 
by Kishen was torn up by the Emperor's orders. At 
this time the position of foreigners at Canton was 
well-nigh unendurable. All trade was stopped, the 
merchants were strictly confined to the foreign settle- 
ment, and any attempt to cross the boundaries of 
that narrow territory was accompanied by risk to life 
and limb. Even without this indiscretion their liberty 
was in jeopardy. The English chaplain, for instance, 
was seized in the settlement and carried off to the 
native city, where he was imprisoned in a loath- 
some cell for four months. 

Meanwhile the Emperor was breathing out death 
and slaughter against the foreign devils. By a 
special edict he ordered troops to march upon 
Canton and Chusan, accompanying his commands 
with strict injunctions that they were to " destroy 
and wipe clean away, to exterminate and root out, 
the rebellious barbarians," and at the same time 
rewards of 50,000 dollars were offered for the capture 
of Captain Elliot, Sir Gordon Bremer, and Mr. 



224 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

Morrison. In these circumstances Captain Elliot 
saw only one course open to him. Diplomacy had 
failed, and all that was left for him to do was to place 
the matter in Commodore Bremer's hands. That officer 
at once attacked the Bogue forts, which had already 
suffered capture at the hands of British sailors on 
several occasions. In this case the operation was 
repeated with ease, although three thousand Chinese 
soldiers stood for the defence of the position. With 
the same agility as that they displayed in the late war 
with Japan, the Chinese soldiers no sooner found 
their forts untenable than they took to their heels. 
On the following day the fleet proceeded up the 
river, and as they had done to the Bogue forts, so did 
they to the fortifications which lie in the higher 
reaches in the neighbourhood of the city. 

These rapid successes disturbed the Chinese com- 
placency, and as a symptom and a consequence of 
this perturbation, the Prefect of the city met the 
advancing hosts with a flag of truce, which covered a 
petition for a three days' suspension of hostilities. 
This was granted, and as no satisfactory arrangement 
resulted from it, the fleet moved up still nearer to 
Canton, capturing without the slightest difficulty 
every fort and camp on the way. This further 
advance again drew the Prefect, who appeared with 
the familiar white flag, and who again secured a 
truce, during which it was arranged that the trade 
of the port should be carried on as usual. The 
breathing time thus given to the Chinese was 
diligently utilised by them in collecting forces and 
materials in the vain hope of being able to over- 



PREPARATIONS FOR WAR 225 

whelm the barbarians. The most redoubtable troops 
of the Empire were hurried by forced marches to 
Canton, and the appetite of the men for foreign blood 
was sharpened by an Imperial Edict, in which the 
Emperor stated that it " behoved them to make a 
severe example of the foreign devils." 

Kishen, who up to this time had shown a con- 
ciliatory spirit in his negotiations with Captain 
Elliot, adopted, probably from policy, the tone of 
his Imperial master, and memorialised the Throne in 
a paper in which he spoke of the " perverse craftiness 
of the presuming foreigners who have shown them- 
selves to be obstinate and impracticable in every 
way." By his instigation there were collected by 
the middle of May, 1841, in the neighbourhood of 
Canton, fifty thousand troops, most of whom, however, 
were comparatively innocuous, being unarmed. The 
attitude of the people, however, now became so 
threatening, that Captain Elliot directed all for- 
eigners to provide for their safety by leaving the 
settlement. This proceeding precipitated matters, 
and the Chinese, who had made ample preparations 
for an onslaught, immediately opened a night attack 
upon the British fleet. Sir Hugh Gough, who had 
taken command of the troops, and Sir Fleming 
Senhouse, the newly-arrived Admiral, at once took 
matters in hand, and promptly prepared to meet the 
emergency by investing the city. The Chinese made 
a show of resistance to the attacking force, but 
declined coming to close quarters, and eventually 
bargained to ransom the city on the following terms. 
They agreed to pay down 6,000,000 dollars, and they 

16 



226 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

undertook that the three Imperial Commissioners 
who had been sent to annihilate the foreign devils 
should march with their troops to a distance of 
sixty miles from the city ; that they should pay 
compensation for the property which had been looted 
from the factories ; and that the Chinese troops 
should evacuate the city. 

The maintenance of a permanent peace had now 
become impossible, and the English Government, 
deeming it essential that the present very unsatis- 
factory condition of things should be finally put an 
end to, appointed Sir Henry Pottinger to succeed 
Captain Elliot as Minister, and Admiral Sir William 
Parker to take command of the fleet. Pottinger's 
instructions were precise. He was ordered to discard 
the existing system of dealing with the provincial 
authorities, and to open relations with the Imperial 
Government. The attitude, however, of the Emperor 
and his Ministers at this juncture was not such as to 
make it at all probable that they would be disposed 
to listen to reason, and it at once became apparent 
that it would be necessary to teach them wisdom by 
the hard hand of experience. Without wasting time 
with empty negotiations, therefore. Sir Henry placed 
matters in the hands of the Admiral, who, realising 
that to go northward was to approach the Court, set 
sail on August 21, 1842. The first point of attack 
was the city of Amoy, which yielded in the ready 
way in which towns garrisoned by Chinese troops are 
in the habit of submitting to superior forces. 

After leaving a small garrison to hold the captured 
fort, the fleet sailed for the Island of Chusan, and 



BRITISH VICTORIES 22/ 

proceeded at once to take the town of Tinghai. In 
two hours from the time when the first shot was fired 
the town was in our hands, and the Admiral and 
General were at liberty to sail across to the mainland 
to attack Chenhai (Chinhai). The British troops 
having landed from the ships, marched on this city in 
three columns, and the Chinese, having been unwise 
enough to venture out from the protection of their 
walls, were without any difficulty scattered to the 
four winds of heaven. The Chinese generals, in their 
ignorance, had deemed this place to be so strong that 
any attack made on it by the English barbarians 
would, in their opinion, be doomed to disaster. The 
result, therefore, came as such a surprise to Yukien, 
the Viceroy of the province, that in order to avoid 
the personal consequences of his Imperial master's 
displeasure, he committed suicide. The feeling of 
compassion with which we should otherwise be 
inclined to regard the end of Yukien's career is 
mitigated by the recollection of the extreme brutality 
with which he treated two English prisoners, one of 
whom was by his orders flayed alive and then burnt 
to death. 

The possession of Chenhai was important as 
opening the way to the large and populous city of 
Ningpo, whither Sir Hugh Gough at once advanced. 
To his surprise he found the town practically un- 
defended, and occupied its defences without being 
called upon to strike a blow. In the first instance 
the arrival of our troops alarmed the people to such 
an extent that they carried off into the surrounding 
country their valuables and women concealed in 



228 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

baskets, and receptacles of all kinds, including 
coffins. When, however, it became evident that our 
ways were not as their ways, and that our rule was 
guided by justice and humanity, the remaining 
people gladly opened their shops, and eagerly com- 
peted for the privilege and advantage of supplying 
our troops with the necessaries of life. The news of 
these disasters — the fall of Amoy, Tinghai, Chenhai, 
and Ningpo — produced great alarm at Court, and two 
high officials, Ilipu (Elepoo) and Kiying were Im- 
perially commissioned to provide for the defences of 
the rich and important city of Hangchow, near 
Ningpo. It so happened, however, that it did not 
enter into Sir Hugh Gough's plan of campaign to 
interfere with the Commissioners in their very com- 
fortable quarters, and instead of marching on Hang- 
chow he moved northwards, and, in passing, took the 
city of Tzuki on his way to Wusung, at the mouth of 
the Shanghai river. Here again the same condition 
of things that had prevailed at Chenhai and Ningpo 
were found to exist. Considering the defences of 
Wusung as impregnable, it had been deemed quite 
unnecessary to fortify Shanghai, and so soon, there- 
fore, as the English troops had driven the Chinese 
from the ramparts of Wusung, Shanghai lay at their 
mercy. 

But it was plain that though these successes had 
created alarm at Peking, it would be necessary to 
advance further inland in order to bring sufficient 
pressure to soften the hardened heart of the Emperor 
Taokwang. Sir Henry Pottinger, therefore, directed 
the Commanders to advance up the Yangtsze-kiang 



^S^ <S\^ T"^^*^^^^^ 




230 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

to Nanking, the ancient capital of the Empire. In 
course of this expedition it was considered indis- 
pensable to capture the important town of Chenkiang 
(Chinkiang), which stands on the southern shore of 
the Great River, at a distance of about seventy miles 
from Nanking. This town was strongly walled and 
fortified, and was further protected by entrenched 
camps outside the city. The garrison within the town 
consisted of twelve hundred Manchu soldiers, eight 
hundred Mongols, and about the same number of 
Chinese troops, while the encampments were held by 
three thousand men from the neighbouring provinces. 
The bombardment of the walls not effecting a 
breach as was anticipated, the soldiers placed scaling 
ladders against the walls and swarmed on to the 
top. At first the Chinese showed a certain amount 
of courage in defending the city, but, quite in 
accordance with their usual manner, they no sooner 
felt that they were overpowered than they scattered 
in all directions. On this occasion the loss of life 
was terrible. Not only were the soldiers mowed 
down by our troops, but in their despair thousands 
of them committed suicide, while whole families 
were ruthlessly murdered to prevent them falling 
into the hands of the English. The scenes witnessed 
were heartrending. The houses were full of the 
dead and dying, and the wells were choked with the 
bodies of women and children who had either thrown 
themselves in, or been thrown in to save them from 
capture. 

On the opposite side of the river stands the town 
of Iching, which was visited in advance by one of the 



CHINESE INCONSISTENCIES 23 1. 

ships of the fleet. On becoming aware, in answer to 
inquiries, that the Commander had no intention of 
bombarding the town, the people vied with each 
other in showing attentions to the foreign devils, 
and actually, while the magistrate and magnates 
were entertaining the English captain and officers at 
dinner, the sound of the guns which were dealing out 
death and destruction at Chenkiang broke in on the 
feast, without in any way disturbing the revellers. 
So complete is the absence of all patriotic feeling 
among the strange people of " that jest and riddle of 
the world " China ! With no undue delay before 
Chenkiang the fleet continued its voyage to Nanking, 
opposite which it arrived on the 9th day of August, 
and whither the Imperial Commissioners Ilipu and 
Kiying hastened to meet the English Plenipotentiary. 
Niu Kien, the Viceroy of the province, had already 
had some experience of English soldiers and sailors. 
He had saved his life by a rapid stragetic movement 
to the rear when Wusung had fallen, but even after 
this incident he was still disposed to regard with 
contempt the " rebel " troops of England, and pro- 
fessed himself determined to defend Nanking to the 
last gasp. The appearance of the fleet before the 
walls, however, had a modifying effect on his warlike 
ardour. 

Fortunately, also, in the cause of peace Kiying and 
Ilipu quickly appeared on the scene, and in company 
with Niu Kien formed a triumvirate to whom the 
Emperor had entrusted the conduct of the nego- 
tiations. In reply to a preliminary report of these 
officials, the Emperor issued a decree full of lofty 



232 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

platitudes and condescending phrases, but which to 
all intents and purposes amounted to a full con- 
currence in the views they had expressed on the 
necessity of making peace. Ilipu from the first had 
worked in the cause of amity, and had on previous 
occasions shown his goodwill by giving liberty to 
English captives who had fallen into his hands. 
With these plenipotentiaries Sir Henry Pottinger 
immediately opened negotiations, and the weariness 
of the discussions which followed were pleasantly 
diversified by a series of entertainments, which were 
given by the high-contracting parties. Finally, after 
some delay, a treaty was concluded by which it was 
fairly hoped that a firm and durable peace might 
be established between the two Empires. By the 
terms of this document it was agreed that the four 
additional ports of Amoy, Foochow Foo, Ningpo, and 
Shanghai should be open to trade, that Hongkong 
should be ceded to the British Crown in perpetuity, 
and that the sum of 21,000,000 dollars should be 
paid to the victors in the war — 6,000,000 as the 
value of opium destroyed by Lin at Canton, 
3,000,000 on account of debts due to British sub- 
jects, and 12,000,000 on account of the expenses 
which had been incurred. The treaty was signed 
on the 29th of August, 1842, and though in the 
negotiations the Chinese had displayed a conciliatory 
spirit, they at the same time made no attempt to 
conceal their desire to get rid of the Barbarians' 
ships from the inner waters of the Empire. Indeed, 
in the edict already spoken of, the Emperor, in a 
lordly manner, had issued an order " that the whole 



PEACE CONCLUDED 233 

of the Barbarian vessels were to leave the Great River 
by the 14th of September." To secure this end it 
was necessary that there should be no delay in 
ratifying the treaty at Peking, and with unexampled 
celerity the document was despatched to the capital, 
received the Imperial signature, and returned to 
Nanking. The date fixed by the Emperor for the 
departure of the ships was, however, somewhat 
exceeded, and it was not until the end of October 
that the fleet once more assembled off Tinghai in 
Chusan. This island was to be held as a security 
for the indemnity due, and a garrison of two 
thousand men was left for its defence. A further 
force of one thousand men was stationed at Amoy, 
and Hongkong was protected by seventeen hundred 
troops. 

China is such an immense and dislocated country 
that events which occur in one portion of its domain 
in no way necessarily affect the remaining provinces. 
Thus it was that while the British forces had taken 
city after city in Central China, and a Treaty of Peace 
had been concluded between the two Empires, affairs 
in Canton remained unaffected by the war, and 
unpacified by the peace. Riots were, both before 
and after the treaty, of frequent occurrence, the 
city remained forbidden ground for foreigners, and 
large levies of militia were collected in the neigh- 
bourhood with the avowed intention of driving the 
foreigners into the sea. By a happy chance Ilipu, 
after the conclusion of the treaty at Nanking, was 
sent as Imperial Commissioner to this unruly district. 
The experience he had gained in the Central Pro- 



234 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

vinces as to the superiority of foreign methods of 
warfare led him to recognise the folly of the anti- 
foreign efforts that were being made by the local 
officials. Belonging to the Imperial kindred, and 
having won laurels in his kinsman's service, he was 
enabled to take a strong line on this occasion, and he 
did not hesitate therefore to issue a proclamation in 
which he announced that " it has now been arranged 
by treaty with England that . . . as long as EngHsh 
foreigners live quietly, and attend to their business, 
our people may not disturb or molest them." Un- 
happily Ilipu did not live long enough to consolidate 
the friendly regiine which he had inaugurated. His 
health was failing when he reached Canton, and on 
the 4th of March, 1843, ^^^ died, in the seventy- 
second year of his age. 

In distant Formosa the anti-foreign feeling had 
been conscious of no such check as that it had thus 
received at Canton, and Sir Henry Pottinger was 
met on his triumphant return to Hongkong with the 
dispiriting news that upwards of a hundred British 
sailors had been ruthlessly beheaded by the island 
authorities. Inquiries confirmed the truth of the 
report, and the few survivors who escaped the fate of 
their comrades bore pathetic witness to a dismal tale 
of intense cruelty on the one hand, and of courageous 
endurance on the other. Sir Henry Pottinger at 
once demanded reparation for this wrong, and Iliang, 
the Governor of Chehkiang, was sent as Imperial 
Commissioner to investigate the circumstances. 
Iliang who, like Ilipu, was of the Imperial kindred, 
took a reasonable view of the situation, and through 



MASSACRE OP ENGLISHMEN 235 

his instrumentality the Formosan officials who had 
authorised the massacre were degraded, and sent to 
Peking for punishment. 

The treaty having been concluded, there remained 
only for Sir Henry Pottinger to arrange the regula- 
tions of trade. This was no easy task, as the Chinese 
in their usual manner, having agreed to the terms of 
treaty, devoted all their energies to whittling away its 
provisions. At length, after much discussion, and no 
little active diplomacy, the task was completed in 
July, 1843, and in the following June Sir Henry 
sailed for England, leaving to his successor. Sir John 
Davis, the management of affairs. 

Thd new plenipotentiary soon found that in accept- 
ing the office of Superintendent of Trade he had 
entered upon a sea of troubles. At Canton the 
officials and people still gratified their hatred of 
foreigners by offering them continued and constant 
insults. They had been so long accustomed to 
tyrannise over the foreign devils, and to consider 
that their existence at Canton depended only on 
favour, and had no relation to right, that they were 
quite unable to accommodate themselves to the new 
order of things as laid down by the treaty. They 
declined to recognise the ex-territorial clauses, and 
on the occasion of a Chinese subject being accident- 
ally killed by an Englishman they demanded that 
the slayer should be given up to the tender mercies 
of Chinese justice. This, of course, was refused, and 
the opportune arrival of Kiying served to suppress 
the popular ferment which was rapidly approaching 
the point of danger. The conclusion of the treaty at 



236 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

Nanking having inspired other nations with a desire 
to follow in our footsteps, a French minister, and sub- 
sequently an American colleague appeared at Canton 
to negotiate with Klying treaties for their respective 
countries. Under the sobering influence of Kiying's 
arrival and these negotiations, matters for a time 
proceeded more quietly at Canton, and the new ports 
were opened to trade without let or hindrance. It 
was once said to the writer by a Frenchman who was 
comparing the position of his countrymen with that 
of the English in China, "We come to China with 
our ideas, you with your merchandise." One form 
which French ideas have ever taken in China has 
been the furtherance of the Roman Catholic religion, 
and the first prominent step taken by Louis Philippe's 
representative was to urge on the Imperial Govern- 
ment the propriety of restoring churches and build- 
ings which in preceding years had been destroyed by 
fanatical mobs. With a consideration which, so far 
as it went, was admirable, the Emperor granted this 
request, but accompanied his concession by peremp- 
torily forbidding foreign missionaries from further 
propagating the doctrines of their faith. 

The prostration which has always afflicted China 
after a foreign war has in most cases, as is natural, 
been instrumental in encouraging the turbulent and 
disaffected portions of the people to riot and rebel- 
lion. Thus the secret societies which had been 
crushed for the time being by the vigorous hand of 
Ch'ienlung began again to gather strength after the 
war of '42. The Triad Society, which was destined 
to be productive of the T'aip'ing Rebellion, became 



SECRET SOCIETIES 23/ 

actively aggressive, and with its well-known motto, 
" Dethrone the Ch'ings and restore the Mings," led a 
rebellion which broke out in the southern and central 
provinces of the Empire. The example set by this 
Society was followed by the "White Lily" sect in 
Northern China, and at the same time, and probably 
from the same cause, the Mahommedans in distant 
Kashgaria broke out into revolt against the " Son 
of Heaven." With promptitude and vigour Tao- 
kwang despatched troops to meet these several 
emergencies, and we cannot but wonder at the 
inefficiency of the different rebel forces when we 
recollect that they were conquered and suppressed 
by troops armed only with bows and arrows, or with 
the scarcely more formidable gingalls and spears. 
However, the fact has to be acknowledged that the 
several victories were complete, and so comparatively 
potent became the commands of the Emperor, even 
in furthest Central Asia, that at his word twelve 
thousand families submitted to transportation from 
their native Kashgaria to the province of Hi. 

" It is difficult work being a mandarin nowadays," 
once remarked a high Chinese official, and certainly 
in the 'forties it was no light task to hold of^ce at the 
treaty ports. At Canton difficulties were constantly 
arising, and a brutal assault on a party of English- 
men when on a visit to the neighbouring town of 
Fatshan brought matters to a climax at this port. 
Sir John Davis, considering that a standing protest 
against such conduct should be made once and for 
all, requested the admiral and general commanding, 
to make reprisals at the source of the mischief With 



238 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

admirable promptitude the commanders led their 
forces up the Canton river, and having once again 
captured the Bogue forts and the other defences in 
the way, took up a position opposite the city walls. 
In his memorial to the throne on this occasion 
Kiying expressed his supreme surprise at the appear- 
ance of the British force, and complained of the tone 
and attitude adopted by the English plenipotentiary. 
But though thus protesting, he considered it wise to 
yield to Sir John Davis's demands, and definitely 
agreed that the city of Canton should be opened to 
foreigners in two years' time from that date (6th of 
April, 1847); that Englishmen should be at liberty 
to roam for exercise or amusement in the neighbour- 
hood of the city ; that a church should be erected ; 
and that a site should be granted for building pre- 
mises on the opposite side of the river. At about 
the same time a somewhat similar outrage occurred 
at Shanghai. Three missionaries who had visited 
a town in the vicinity were attacked by a number 
of junkmen belonging to the vessels which were 
anchored at the port. Mr. Consul Alcock (after- 
wards Sir Rutherford Alcock) at once demanded 
reparation for the outrage, and not receiving it, 
requested the captain of H.M.S. Childers to prevent 
all or any of the fourteen hundred grain-junks and 
fifty war-junks, which were about to sail for Peking, 
from leaving the anchorage until the culprits should 
be given up. Commander Pitman was equal to the 
occasion, and with his single ship held this vast fleet 
in check. Meanwhile Mr. Alcock despatched Mr. 
Harry Parkes on board H.M.S. Espiegle to Nanking, 




h.p:. sir hakky s. pakkes, k.c.Bo 



240 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

to lay before the Viceroy a formal complaint against 
the local authorities. The effect of these measures 
was excellent. The rioters were seized and punished, 
reparation was made, and the lesson was duly taken 
to heart by the natives, who for years afterwards 
showed a friendly attitude towards Europeans. The 
English Government of the day disapproved of 
Davis's action at Canton, fearing the outbreak of 
another war, but Alcock escaped censure. It is 
unquestionable that Sir John Davis's action was 
precipitate, and might in other circumstances have 
been conducive to a breach of the peace. But it is 
to be remembered that he was dealing with old 
offenders, and with men of a turbulent and unruly 
spirit. The Shanghai people, on the contrary, are, 
as a rule, peaceable, and in this case, as the result 
showed, Alcock's more constitutional treatment of 
the affair was crowned with complete success. But 
similar action under like circumstances at Canton 
would have been as futile as diplomatic pressure 
without the mailed fist has always been. 

The Governor of Canton at the time was the 
redoubtable Yeh, who, after acting in opposition to 
foreigners, and to ourselves especially, for ten or 
twelve years, was made prisoner by Sir Harry 
Parkes, and ended his days as an exile in Calcutta. 
Under the influence of this man things went from 
bad to worse within his jurisdiction. Like most 
Chinamen, he had no idea of administration in its 
truest sense. His one remedy for all political 
offences was the execution ground. Popular rights 
he ignored with even more than Chinese indifference, 



THE CANTONESE OBDURATE 2\\ 

and thus aroused a spirit of antagonism among his 
subjects, which made itself felt in every part of the 
province. Pirates swept the coast, seizing on every 
merchant junk which they encountered, until from the 
coast of Tongking to the neighbourhood of Foochow 
merchants ventured on vo3^ages at the risk of their 
lives and goods. In the interior of the province the 
Triad Society spread its noxious branches, and at 
the port of Macao the anti-foreign feeling of the 
people found vent in the murder of the Governor, 
Signor Amaral. The people within the city still 
showed a determined opposition to admitting 
foreigners within their gates, and unfortunately 
found support for their antagonism from the 
Emperor himself, who proclaimed in an edict that, 
"That to which the hearts of the people incline is 
that on which the decree of Heaven rests. Now 
the people of Kwangtung are unanimous and deter- 
mined that they will not have foreigners enter the 
city, and how can I post up everywhere my Imperial 
order, and force an opposite course upon the people." 
These utterances were quite sufficient to stiffen the 
backs of the Cantonese, and encouraged the in- 
habitants of other towns to enforce the same 
exclusive policy. Near Canton stands the town of 
Hwangchukki, which has always borne an evil repute 
for violence. Supported by the Emperor's apparent 
approval, the natives of this place determined to 
emphasise their adherence to the policy of the pro- 
vincial capital whenever occasion should arise. They 
had not long to wait. On an ill-fated day six 
Englishmen made an excursion to the smaller city. 



242 FOREIGN RELA TIONS . WITH CHINA 

The mob at once rose, and with brutal violence 
murdered them all. This was an outrage which 
might well have led to a renewal of hostilities, and 
which probably would have done so had Yeh been 
in supreme command. The Imperial Commissioner 
Kiying, however, was still on the spot, and with wise 
and immediate action ordered the capture of the 
offenders, who in due course were tried at Canton, 
and beheaded for their crime. 

In a country such as China there is always a 
certain amount of discontent floating about which 
needs but the appearance of a leader to crystallise 
it into a body ready for action. As we have seen 
already, there had long been a feeling of more than 
ordinary unrest among the Cantonese, and there now 
arose a man who was destined to give expression 
to the prevailing disloyalty, and in the course of 
his exploits to shake the Empire to its very base. 
In a village in the neighbourhood of Canton there 
was born of a Hakka, or emigrant family, a youth 
possessing the name of Hung Hsiuts'uan, who, being 
endowed with abilities, and with a considerable 
amount of ambition, desired to place his foot on 
the rungs of the official ladder. With this object 
in view he studied the wayworn classics of his 
country, and presented himself at Canton as a 
candidate for examination. But the fates were 
against him, and his failure is accounted for by 
some who attribute it to the fact of his parentage 
— the Hakkas being looked upon as a pariah class 
— and by others to his want of scholarship. On 
the occasion of his first visit to the provincial 



HUNG S VISIONS 243 

capital in 1833 he chanced to meet an evangehst, 
who interested him for the time being, but whose 
doctrines soon lost all salutary effect upon him. 
Four years later, however, he again appeared as a 
candidate, and again met the Scripture reader, to 
whose teachings, as was subsequently proved, he 
listened attentively. Returning to his home for 
the second time unsuccessful, he fell ill with what 
appeared likely to prove a fatal malady. As he 
tossed upon his bed in his delirium he saw many 
strange and weird visions. He listened to the 
music of the spheres. He was visited by ominous 
beasts, and he had a vision of the Almighty, who 
entered his room and placed a sword in his hand, 
with which he commanded him to exterminate the 
ruling powers, at the same time foretelling that there 
lay a great future before him. For forty days he 
remained in this delirious condition, and at the 
end of that time he arose endowed with strength, 
and with a firm determination to execute the behests 
of his heavenly visitor. 

It is more than probable that Hung really believed 
in his divine mission. It is no uncommon thing for 
hysterical youths, especially when under the influence 
of pseudo-religious fanaticism, to place faith in visions 
and prophetic utterances. In his case also it is plain 
that the illness which overtook him was of a purely 
nervous character. But notwithstanding their neurotic 
source his convictions were strong, and he was able 
to impress those about him with a belief in his views. 
By degrees, first of all in his own household, and 
afterwards in the neighbourhood, followers gathered 



244 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

to him, and he and they attempted to spread the 
doctrines of the Shangti Hui, or the " Association of 
the Almighty," which he estabHshed. The term Hui^ 
however, alarmed the authorities. It is the common 
title taken by the Secret Societies which so largely 
infest the Empire, and which are so abhorrent in 
the eyes of the mandarins. They therefore declared 
the association to be treasonable, and Hung found 
it advisable to drop the epithet. Though discarding 
the obnoxious word, however, he proceeded at once 
to associate himself with a far more treasonable 
corporation than the Shangti Hui, viz., the " Triad 
Society," and so active did his followers become in 
this cause that the Government, in alarm, despatched 
three Imperial Commissioners from Peking to stamp 
out the movement. Of these three men Tahungah, 
who had ordered the massacre of the British sailors 
in Formosa, was chief With him were associated 
Saishangah, a notorious profligate and Prime 
Minister, and Hsingte. Though armed with pleni- 
potentiary powers these three courtiers carefully 
refrained from coming to close quarters with 
Hung's troops, who, full of iconoclastic zeal, 
destroyed the Buddhist temples in the country- 
side, and threw down the idols. 

But more serious matters than these anti-religious 
ebullitions speedily demanded the attention of the 
rebels. Circumstances had driven them to take up 
arms against the Empire, and having captured two 
market towns in their neighbourhood, they ventured 
to attack the city of Lienchow. This place they took 
without much difficulty, and in succession, Taitsun, 



REBEL SUCCESSES 245 

Yunganchow and Nanning Fu, the port which it is 
now proposed to open, fell into their hands. These 
successes created a panic at Canton, and Yeh made 
strenuous efforts to strengthen the defences of the 
city in anticipation of a siege. In a memorial pre- 
sented to the throne at this time, a Canton official 
described the state of the province in these words, 
"the whole country swarms with the rebels. Our 
funds are nearly at an end, and our troops are few ; 
our officers disagree and the power is not concentrated. 
The commander of the forces wants to extinguish a 
burning waggon load of faggots with a cupful of 
water. ... I fear we shall hereafter have some 
serious affair, that the great body of the people will rise 
against us, and that our own followers will leave us." 
After the above victories. Hung was gratified by 
experiencing the truth of the common saying that 
nothing succeeds like success. Following on each 
capture troops flocked to his standard, probably 
actuated more by the desire for plunder than from 
any political convictions. At all events they added 
to his strength, but the movement being rather of a 
destructive than constructive nature, it was necessary 
that he should constantly lead his new recruits for- 
ward, and having exhausted the resources of one 
district, seek fresh woods and pastures new, elsewhere. 
With this object he marched northwards instead of 
against the provincial capital, having first proclaimed 
his authority by issuing degrees purporting to have 
been communicated to him by the Heavenly Father. 
Crossing the northern frontier of Kwangtung he 
marched into Hunan, and striking the Hsiang river 



246 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

followed down its course taking all such cities as 
were not strong enough to resist him. Up to this 
point Hung had not met a single Chinese commander 
possessing any courage or a modicum of military 
ability. He was now to enter into conflict with a 
general of a very different stamp, and who was 
destined in the end to bring the rebellion to ruin. 

On the approach of the rebels Tseng Kwofan, the 
father of the Marquis Tseng who lately represented 
China at the Court of St. James, threw himself into 
Changsha, the capital of the province, and with all 
speed set to work to fortify the town and to equip a 
defending force. The success of his tactics was 
complete. Thrice the T'aip'ings attacked the walls 
and thrice they were beaten back by the actively led 
garrison. This successful resistance having made it 
plain to the " Heavenly King " that the capture of 
the city was beyond his powers, he raised the siege, 
and leaving that and the important town of Hsiangtan 
in Imperial hands, continued his way to the Yangtsze- 
kiang. In quick succession Yochow, Wuchang and 
Kiukiang were taken by his troops, and at the last 
named place he successfully withstood a siege con- 
ducted by Tseng Kwofan, who had followed close on 
his heels. 

It is easy to believe that after these undoubtedly 
great successes Hung's belief in his divine mission 
became engrained in him, and in March, 1853, he 
published a book of Celestial Decrees, containing a 
series of revelations which to an unprejudiced 
observer have all the appearance of gross profana- 
tion. One of these documents contains the follow- 



AN IMPIOUS PROCLAMATION 247 

ing passage : " The Heavenly Father addressed 
the multitude, saying, ' O my children ! do you 
know your Heavenly Father, and your Celestial 
Brother ? ' To which they all replied, ' We know 
our Heavenly Father and Celestial Elder Brother.' 
The Heavenly Father then said, ' Do you know your 
Lord, and truly ? ' To which they all replied, ' We 
know our Lord right well.' The Heavenly Father 
said, * I have sent your Lord down into the world to 
become the Celestial King (T'ienwang, the title which 
Hung had adopted) ; every word he utters is a 
Celestial command to which you must be obedient ; 
you must truly assist your Lord and regard your 
King ; you must not dare to act disorderly, nor to be 
disrespectful. If you do not regard your Lord and 
King, every one of you will be involved in difficulty.'" 
With such strange and unnatural incitements Hung 
secured the allegiance of his ignorant followers, and 
with full confidence of success led them to the attack 
on Nanking, the ancient capital of the Empire. 
Though the garrison was a large one, composed 
partly of Manchus and partly of Chinese soldiers, 
only a half-hearted defence was made. Without 
much difficulty a gate was blown up, and the 
T'aip'ings rushing into the breach secured possession 
of the walls. The miserable garrison, too cowardly 
to defend an exceptionally strong position, had the 
further baseness to plead — they-pleaded in vain — for 
their lives at the hands of the conquerors. The 
T'aip'ings had not learned, and never did learn, the 
lesson that mercy blesses those who give, and without 
hesitation they made a clean sweep of their abject 



248 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

foes. It is said that out of twenty thousand Manchu 
citizens not a hundred were left to tell the tale of 
the slaughter. As a T'aip'ing said to Mr. Consul 
Meadows at the time, " We killed them all, to the 
infant in arms ; we left not a root to sprout from ; 
and the bodies of the slain we cast into the 
Yangtsze." 

Having thus established himself in the second city 
of the Empire, the " Heavenly King " made some 
efforts towards introducing a system of administra- 
tion among his followers. As self-assertion always 
exercises a powerful influence in the assumption of 
authority, he determined to adopt the Imperial 
purple and to proclaim himself Emperor of China, 
at the same time announcing that his Dynasty was 
to be known in the future as the T'aip'ing Dynasty. 
In support of this new dignity he severally appointed 
four of his principal supporters as Kings of the 
North, East, South, and West. These very incom- 
plete efforts towards establishing a Government 
seem to have exhausted his exertions and ability, 
and he sank from this time into obscurity. He was 
never subsequently seen beyond the gates of his 
palace, where he was waited upon by women only, 
and where, in the midst of very questionable 
surroundings, he gave himself up to a life of 
indolence and self indulgence. In these circum- 
stances the management of affairs naturally drifted 
into the hands of those who were able and willing 
to accept the responsibility of office, and practically 
the four kings exercised complete and irresponsible 
authority in all matters connected with the new 



THE T^IENWANG CALLED TO ACCOUNT 249 

dynasty. The Eastern King, who seems to have 
followed more closely than the others in the steps 
of his liege lord, was, or pretended to be, subject 
to trances, in one of which ecstatic conditions he 
received a " message from the Almighty " ordering 
him to rebuke and chastise the T'ienwang for his 
treatment of the women within the palace. Yang, 
who appeared to be by no means loth to exercise 
the delegated authority thus granted him, took his 
chief to task, and even induced him to prostrate 
himself to receive the chastisement decreed by the 
Most High. This humiliation was considered to be 
sufficient, and Yang, instead of inflicting the merited 
stripes, proceeded to remonstrate with him on 
the gross impropriety of kicking and otherwise 
ill using his concubines and female attendants. For 
a time the T'ienwang submitted to these rebukes, 
and even proclaimed Yang to be the personification 
of the Holy Ghost. But at last the yoke became 
unendurable, and on a charge of treachery which 
ill became his divine character, Yang was tried, 
condemned, and beheaded. 

The position which the T'aip'ings had thus secured 
on the Yangtsze-kiang naturally induced foreigners, 
who had watched the progress of the movement with 
interest and some concern, to desire to gauge 
accurately the objects and power of the rebels. 
It was plain that if, as then appeared likely, they 
were destined to overthrow the ruling dynasty, it 
would be an advantage to be brought into contact 
with some of their leading men and to have some 
idea of the policy which they were likely to pursue. 



250 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

Governor Bonham was among the first to visit 
Nanking with this object in view, but beyond 
satisfying his curiosity and exciting a superficial 
interest among the rebels, the visit proved to be 
singularly unproductive of results. 

So far, however, fortune had smiled on the T'ien- 
wang, but it was obvious that so long as Peking was 
beyond his grasp he must be considered to have 
failed of the goal which was his ultimate aim. At a 
council of war held at Nanking this subject was 
debated, and it was finally determined that the die 
should be cast, and that an expedition should be 
sent against the northern capital. In March, 1853, 
a column started northwards on this adventurous 
endeavour. So completely had the terror of the 
T'aip'ing name influenced the garrisons of towns in 
the neighbourhood of the great river that without let 
or hindrance the column marched triumphantly as 
far as K'aifung Fu, the capital city of Honan. Here 
a bold front was shown to the invaders, who, finding 
the capture of the city to be beyond their power, 
raised the siege, as their manner was in all similar 
cases, and continued their march northwards. 
Without meeting with any serious opposition they 
traversed the province of Shansi and captured the 
town of Shenchow (Shinchow) in the Metropolitan 
province. Thence they advanced to Tsinghai, 
within twenty miles of Tientsin, and there en- 
trenched themselves. The march had been daringly 
and well executed, and it reflects infinite discredit 
on the Imperial forces that so much had been 
accomplished at so small a cost. In a six months' 



A MARCH ON PEKING '2 5 1 

raid the rebels had captured twenty-six cities, and 
had finally established themselves within a hundred 
miles of Peking. But the effort had been made in 
defiance of the true principles of warfare. They had 
no supports, and like all Oriental armies they were 
absolutely without commissariat, being dependent 
only on plunder for their daily bread. Movement 
was therefore essential to their existence, and after 
a short rest at Tsinghai, they marched to the attack 
of the neighbouring city of Tientsin. Here they 
found General Sankolinsin, who subsequently com- 
manded the Imperial forces against the Allies, in 
possession, and failed to make any impression on 
the fortifications garrisoned by the troops of this 
veteran. This check was fatal to the expedition. 
To have marched on Peking with Tientsin untaken 
in their rear would have been an act of full-moon 
madness, and the general in command wisely deter- 
mined rather to force his way back to Nanking than 
to advance to certain ruin. 

With some difficulty and considerable loss he man- 
aged to cut his way through the intervening Imperial 
host, and eventually succeeded in bringing a remnant 
of his forces to the capital of his chief Another 
column which had started with the idea of support- 
ing the first expedition, on hearing of the retreat 
from Tsinghai, retired with alacrity and retraced its 
steps to Nanking. It was in connection with these 
expeditions that Li Hungchang, who has since 
filled so prominent a place in Chinese politics, first 
stepped on to the stage. Feeling that it was a time 
when China might reasonably expect every man to 



252 FOREIGN RELATIONS WITH CHINA 

do his duty, Li, who was still residing under the 
parental roof at Hofei in Anhui, raised a regiment 
of militia to contest the progress of the northern 
column. Whether from a disinclination to meet the 
enemy face to face, or from the fact that he was too 
late in the field to do so, certain it is that his military 
tactics consisted in following in the track of the 
rebels and harassing their rear-guard so long as they 
remained within the frontier of Anhui. Though 
there was nothing striking in these military man- 
oeuvres of the future Viceroy, his patriotic exertions 
were of sufficient value to attract the attention of 
Tseng Kwofan, who from that time forth became his 
constant patron and friend. 

The non-success of this attempt on Peking was a 
serious blow to the T'aip'ing cause. Not only had 
the rebels lost prestige by it, but it had deprived 
them of fresh districts from which they might 
recruit their ranks and plunder necessaries. In this 
dilemma they were driven to enlarge their borders on 
the banks of the great river, and from Ichang to Yang- 
chow they soon reigned supreme, if it is possible to 
speak of such banditti as reigning at all. Adminis- 
tration can hardly be said to have entered into their 
system, and the fiendish barbarity with which they 
desolated cities and villages has even to the present 
day left its mark on some of the fairest provinces of 
China. Nanking itself was at this time ruled without 
any regard for law and right, and presented a sordid 
scene of Oriental debauchery accompanied with all 
the intrigues and murders which usually belong to 
such a state. No man's life was safe for five minutes, 



REBEL REVERSES 253 

and a reign of terror took possession of the followers 
of the Dynasty of Great Peace (T'aip'ing). As was 
inevitable, this state of things at headquarters 
affected by degrees the efficiency of the troops in the 
provinces, and the Imperialists, taking heart of grace 
at the disorder which prevailed, recovered a number 
of cities with almost as much ease as that with which 
the T'aip'ings a short time before had made them- 
selves masters of them. Gradually the forces of the 
T'ienwang were confined between the cities of Nan- 
king and Anking on the Yangtsze-kiang, both of 
which were closely beleaguered. 



IX 



THE SECOND CHINA WAR 



While these things were going on in the central 
provinces of the Empire, movements unconnected 
with the T'aip'ings, but doubtless produced by the 
unrest occasioned by these truculent disturbers of the 
peace, broke out in various parts of the Empire. 
Canton, that hot-bed of disaffection, was in a state of 
ferment, and Yeh's energies were taxed to the utmost 
to preserve even the apparent supremacy of the 
Emperor. In Szech'uan and Kweichow bands of 
rebels appeared who desolated country districts, and 
held walled cities in defiance of the Imperial com- 
manders. It was while the country was thus seething 
with discontent that Taokwang, whose health had for 
some time been failing, became seriously ill. The 
Chinese are firm believers in signs in the skies. To 
them a comet presages disturbance in the Empire 
and misfortunes to the ruling house, while an eclipse 
of the sun forebodes an equally ominous future. 
Curiously enough in nearly similar circumstances to 
those of the present year an eclipse of the sun was 
foretold for the Chinese New Year's day (a.d. 1850). 

254 



AN OMINOUS PORTENT 2$$ 

This combination of time added unnatural terrors to 
the portent, and in his superstitious terror Taokwang 
had the supreme imprudence to order that New 
Year's Day should be postponed for twenty-four 
hours. It is probable that the omen, as is so often 
the case, was the means of working its own fulfil- 
ment, and before many weeks were over Taokwang 
became, at the age of sixty-nine, a " Guest on high," 
leaving his distracted country to his fourth son, who 
adopted as his Imperial title the epithet of Hsienfeng, 
or " Complete Abundance." 

Why Hsienfeng was chosen to succeed to the 
throne does not clearly appear. By the law of suc- 
cession in China the dying Emperor has the right of 
nominating any one of his sons whom he may please 
as his successor, quite irrespective of the rule of pri- 
mogeniture. Taokwang was blessed with eight sons, 
the next one to Hsienfeng being Prince Kung, whose 
name has long been prominently before the public as 
President of the Tsungli Yamen. A still younger 
brother was Prince Chun, the father of the present 
Emperor Kwanghsii. At the time of his assuming 
the Imperial crown Hsienfeng was nineteen years of 
age and with the blessing of youth combined the 
headstrong disposition which is commonly supposed 
to belong to it. The old councillors Kiying and 
Muchangah, who had served his father long and well, 
he incontinently dismissed from office, and appointed 
in their places men of far less ability, but who possessed 
in his eyes the qualification of being violently anti- 
foreign. The influence of these changes soon made 
itself felt in the provinces, and prompted the Foo- 



256 



THE SECOND CHINA WAR 



chow ofificials to imitate the example of the Canton 
mandarins and to refuse to admit foreigners within 
the walls of the city (1850). At the same time six 
Pailous or Gates of Honour were erected at Canton 
to the Viceroy Hsii for the part he had played in 
preserving the streets of the city from the polluting 




ENTRANCE TO THE TSUNGLI YAMEN, PEKING. 



presence of foreigners. Altogether there were many 
signs that Hsienfeng's position would be by no means 
a bed of roses, and Nature combined with foreigners 
to disturb the peace of the Emperor. A famine 
occurred in the country round Peking which carried 
off many thousands of the people ; a destructive 
earthquake swept over the province of Szech'uan ; 



IMPERIAL REMONSTRANCES 257 

while fires of unusual magnitude and ferocity destroyed 
whole districts. 

It is part of the Imperial etiquette of China that 
the ruling Emperor should see in any convulsions of 
nature a reflection on his own conduct, and of that of 
the officials under him. And in this spirit Hsien- 
feng, in face of the calamities which surrounded him, 
issued an edict in which, after belauding his "pro- 
foundly benevolent and exceedingly gracious " 
parent, he proceeded to depreciate himself and his 
officers in these words. " We, although not laying 
claim to the title of an intelligent ruler, will at the 
same time not lay the blame unnecessarily upon our 
Ministers and officers ; but we just ask them in the 
silent hour of the night to lay their hands upon their 
hearts, and see if they can allow themselves to rest 
satisfied with such a state of things ; if they do not 
now reproach themselves most bitterly for their 
remissness, they will, at some future period, be in- 
volved in evils which they will not be able to remedy. 
We, therefore, publicly announce to all our officers 
great and small, that if from henceforth you do not 
change your habits, and if you pay no regard to this 
our decree, we are determined severely to punish 
you according to the utmost rigour of the law, with- 
out allowing the least indulgence or permitting rigour 
to be tempered by clemency ; for the necessity of the 
present crisis demands it." Judging from appear- 
ances these admonitions fell on deaf ears, for no 
attempt was made to reform the glaring abuses which 
existed and still exist in the country. 

At Canton the question of admittance into the 
18 



258 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

city was still straining the relations between Sir 
George Bonham and Yeh. The promise that had 
been given by Kiying that the gates should be 
thrown open to foreigners in 1849 was not fulfilled by 
his successor, who, as time went on, declared his 
opinion that as the season had passed when the con- 
cession was to have taken effect, the promise must be 
considered as abrogated. And he further protested 
against yielding the privilege, on the ostensible 
ground that the people were of so unruly a nature 
that to grant it would be to incur serious danger 
both to foreigners and to the Imperial authorities 
themselves. This has always been a favourite excuse 
with the Chinese when a request has been advanced 
by foreigners with which they find it difficult to 
comply. It was for many years the traditional 
reason given for not allowing the establishment of 
foreign Legations at Peking. But, as at Canton, 
where on gaining possession of the city the people 
proved to be perfectly friendly, so when in 1861 Sir 
Frederick Bruce and his staff took up their residence 
at the capital they were received with every civility 
by the populace. It was, however, felt to be essential 
that the point in dispute at Canton should be cleared 
up once and for all, and when Sir John Bowring 
succeeded Sir George Bonham in 1852 he took up the 
question with energy. Writing to Lord Clarendon 
he said, " I am still of opinion that, until the city 
question of Canton is settled, there is little hope of 
our relations being placed on anything like a satis- 
factory foundation ; and, moreover, that the settle- 
ment of the said city question might be brought 



BO WRING AND YEH 259 

about without any risk or danger to our great 
interests in China. In my matured judgment it has 
been delayed too long." 

Sir John Bowring's first step in the controversy 
was to notify his appointment as Superintendent of 
Trade to Yeh and to invite him to an interview. 
Yeh's reply was characteristic of the man. He con- 
gratulated Sir John on his appointment, and then 
went on to decline the invitation on the ground that 
his time was fully occupied in making dispositions 
for the campaign against the rebels. Being further 
pressed on the point he had the impertinence to pro- 
pose that Sir John should meet him at a packhouse 
outside the walls of the city. Sir John naturally 
declined this proposal and it was while foreign 
relations were in this condition that Yeh put forward 
a request which could only have been made by a 
Chinaman. While with one hand he dealt out scorn 
and derision against foreigners, with the other he 
asked their help to assist in the suppression of 
the rebels who were troubling his peace. It is 
needless to say that this also was declared to be 
impossible. 

It was while matters were in this condition that 
Parkes (afterwards Sir Harry) was appointed Consul 
at Canton (1856). His well-known ability, courage, 
and perseverance peculiarly qualified him for the 
post at this crisis, and throughout the whole quarrel 
he ably supported Sir John Bowring in the line he 
was adopting with regard to the great question in 
dispute. Yeh had refused to receive Parkes, and, 
though willing to keep up an official correspondence 



260 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

with him, declined to change his main attitude in the 
least degree. Led by their truculent governor, the 
people of the city heaped constant insults on the 
European merchants, and handbills were publicly 
circulated throughout the city calling on the people 
to expel the intruders. One of these documents 
concluded with the following words : " Hereafter, 
therefore, whenever any barbarian dogs come within 
our limits, we ought, by calling together our families, 
to maintain the dignity of our city (or province), and, 
bravely rushing upon them, kill every one. Thus 
may we, in the first place, appease the anger of 
Heaven, in the second give evidence of our loyalty 
and patriotism, and in the third restore peace and 
quiet in our homes. How great would be the happi- 
ness we should thus secure ! " Parkes remonstrated 
vehemently with Yeh against the continued publica- 
tion of this manifesto, but got no redress, though the 
effect of it was presently illustrated by a violent and 
most unprovoked attack which was made upon two 
Englishmen in the neighbourhood of the city. 

Affairs had now reached a point in which it was 
impossible for Englishmen to preserve their dignity 
and to maintain peace, and an outrage which occurred 
almost immediately after the assault just referred to, 
was of so flagrant a nature that it ended in a declara- 
tion of war. An English lorcha named the Arrow ^ 
flying the British flag, was boarded when at anchor at 
Whampoa by Chinese officials, who hauled down the 
flag and threw it with contempt on the deck. So 
soon as the news of this outrage reached the British 
Consulate, Parkes wrote to Yeh remonstrating on the 



THE ARROW AFFAIR 26 1 

action of his subordinates, who added to their guilt 
by carrying off the twelve men constituting the 
crew. Yeh's answer was, as might have been 
expected, evasive, but Parkes was persistent, and 
stated in good round terms that he would be satisfied 
with nothing less than an ample apology and the 
instant and public return of the captive crew. 
On this, in the true Chinese spirit, Yeh sent back 
nine of the men, and claimed two of the others as 
malefactors and one as a witness ; after, however, 
boxing the compass of evasion, he was compelled 
eventually to deliver up the twelve sailors, but in so 
underhand a way did he effect the manumission that 
Parkes refused to receive them, and repeated his 
demand that they should be returned as openly as 
they had been carried off. Yeh still remaining 
recalcitrant. Sir John Bowring authorised the capture 
of a native vessel by way of reprisal. As this 
produced no beneficial effect, he recognised that 
matters had again reached that stage when, as had so 
often happened, it was necessary to place the affair in 
the hands of the Admiral. The British naval forces 
had become so accustomed by repeated experience 
to capturing the Bogue forts and the other defences 
of the city that Sir Michael Seymour moved almost 
automatically to the position which it was necessary 
to take up, and with no difficulty forced his way to 
Canton after having made himself master on his 
voyage up the river of the fortifications in which the 
Chinese so foolishly continued to trust. Towards 
the end of October (1856) the Admiral's ships appeared 
opposite the walls of Canton, and Sir Michael 



262 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

Seymour, after having warned the inhabitants that 
he was about to inflict punishment on their obstinate 
governor, opened fire on the offender's yamen. Even 
this measure failed to bring Yeh to reason, who 
aggravated his offences by issuing the following ill- 
judged proclamation : " The English barbarians have 
attacked the provincial city, and wounded and injured 
our soldiers and people. Their crimes are indeed 
of the most heinous nature. Wherefore I hereby 
distinctly command you to join together to exter- 
minate them, and I publicly proclaim to all the 
military and people, householders and others, that 
you should unite with all the means at your 
command to assist the soldiers and militia in exter- 
minating these troublous English villains, killing 
them wherever you meet them, whether on shore or 
in their ships. For each of their lives that you may 
thus take you shall receive, as before, thirty dollars. 
All ought to respect and obey, and neither oppose 
nor disregard this special proclamation." 

It was plain that with the issuer of this document 
there could be no exchange of compliments, and 
the Admiral, having shelled out Yeh's yamen, 
breached the walls of the city with his guns, and 
landed a party to accentuate the helpless condition 
of the town. Yeh's vaunted preparations to destroy 
the foreign devils proved, like all his boasts, to be of 
no value when brought to the supreme test. With 
little difficulty, and with only a small loss of men, 
the wall was gained, and the possession of a city 
gate was secured. Through this portal, which was 
now freely opened for the first time to foreigners, Sir 



LORD ELGIN APPOINTED 263 

Michael Seymour entered with Parkes and visited 
the ruins of Yeh's yamen. Unfortunately the force 
at the admiral's command was quite insufficient to 
occupy the city effectively, and he therefore with- 
drew his men to the ships, and at the same time 
wrote home an urgent appeal for five thousand men 
to enable him to inflict the necessary punishment on 
the obstructive governor. 

It was plain to Lord Clarendon, who was at this 
time Foreign Secretary, that the matter was of 
sufficient importance to make it necessary that a 
man with higher rank than that of Sir John Bowring 
should be on the spot to carry on the necessary 
negotiations. The choice of the Cabinet fell upon 
Lord Elgin, and though the natural kindliness of his 
disposition made him too often unwilling to inflict 
well-merited punishment, and inclined him to listen 
with too ready an ear to the excuses and apologies 
of the authorities, he yet proved himself an able 
ambassador and a skilful diplomatist. With as little 
delay as possible he sailed for China, taking with him 
the force for which Sir Michael Seymour had asked. 
In June, 1857, he arrived at Singapore, where his 
progress was stayed by an urgent letter from Lord 
Canning, the Governor-General of India, informing 
him of the outbreak of the Indian Mutiny, and 
begging him to divert his troops to help in the 
suppression of a revolt which threatened British 
sovereignty in the great peninsula. With rare un- 
selfishness Lord Elgin at once acceded to the request, 
and, as events proved, he, by so doing, rendered 
eminent service to the Indian Government. Mean- 



264 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

while the withdrawal of Sir Michael Seymour's 
troops from the city of Canton inspired the Chinese 
with fresh though deluded courage, and gave Yeh an 
opportunity of triumphantly announcing that the 
English, by a sudden and piratical attack, had 
succeeded in breaking into the city, but had been 
driven off by the indomitable courage of his men. 

On Lord Elgin's arrival in Hongkong in July, he 
found that, though Canton had been evacuated, a 
series of minor engagements had been carried on 
during the winter, and that in May Sir Michael 
Seymour had conducted a number of attacks on the 
war junks which had collected in the creeks and 
rivers in the neighbourhood of the city. Happily at 
this time Commodore Keppel (now Sir Harry) was 
on the station, and after numerous junks had with his 
help been destroyed in the neighbourhood of Canton, 
it was determined to proceed to inflict an exemplary 
punishment on the war-ships collected at the town of 
Fatshan. Sir Michael Seymour himself headed the 
advance, while Captain Keppel had the command of 
the smaller boats, which were intended to deal more 
directly with the junks. Meanwhile a force of 
marines landed, and carried a battery above the 
town, the Chinese retiring sulkily, but without making 
any serious resistance. The fighting on the river was, 
however, of a more stirring kind. The fire from the 
junks was constant and fairly well directed, in spite 
of which the English boats, though hit time after 
time, went on. Keppel, at the head of a force of 
about five hundred men, took in the position at a 
glance, and, imitating the tactics of Nelson at 



KEPPEL'S attack on fats HAN 265 

Trafalgar, charged into the middle of the fleet, and 
broke the centre. He himself, followed by the men 
of his boat, boarded the largest junk, out of which 
the Chinese sailors fled with alacrity as the English- 
men appeared upon deck. In this instance flight 
was, however, not altogether to be attributed to 
cowardice. They had, as it proved, lighted a 
slow match connected with the powder magazine, 
and Keppel's men had only just retired from the 
deserted ship when she blew up. So far a complete 
victory had been gained. A number of junks had 
been given to the flames, others had been taken as 
spoil, while a few only had escaped up the intricate 
waters which surround Fatshan. Though his loss of 
men had been considerable, and though a decisive 
victory had been achieved, Keppel, thirsting for fresh 
laurels, was minded to attack and take the town of 
Fatshan. Opposite that city a fleet of junks, whose 
fire was unusually well-directed, was formed in a 
serried line. Keppel's boat was sunk under him, and 
though he again succeeded in destroying the fleet, his 
hand was stayed, for the Admiral, deeming further 
operations to be dangerous, gave the signal to retire. 
These disasters to the Chinese arms made no im- 
pression upon the obdurate Yeh, who amused his 
Imperial master with a grotesque travesty of the 
engagements fought, and described with some 
approach to humour how " Elgin passes day after 
day at Hongkong, stamping his foot and sighing." 

But it is ill jesting when the enemy is at your 
gates, and Yeh was soon to discover that Lord Elgin 
was not a foe at whom it was safe to laugh. The 



266 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

English Ambassador, on arrival, had notified his 
presence to Yeh, and had set forth his demands, 
which were, roughly speaking, the complete fulfil- 
ment of all the treaty conditions so far as Canton was 
concerned, and the payment of an indemnity for the 
British losses sustained, owing to the action of the 
Canton authorities. This letter Yeh affected to treat 
with indifference, and had the coolness to suggest 
that the trade of the port should be revived on the 
old conditions, and that each party in the dispute 
should bear their own losses. There being no sign 
of a just appreciation of the position in the answer of 
this inveterate obstructionist. Lord Elgin presented 
an ultimatum on Christmas Day, 1857, giving him 
forty-eight hours for the evacuation of the city by his 
troops. To this communication Yeh vouchsafed no 
answer, and the forty-eight hours having elapsed. Sir 
Michael Seymour seized Honan, and prepared for an 
assault on the city. With a merciful consideration 
for the non-combatant citizens, Parkes issued, and 
personally distributed, proclamations warning the 
people that their city was about to be attacked, and 
explaining the circumstances which had led to this 
extreme measure. Captain Hall, R.N., assisted 
Parkes in this work of mercy, and happened " in one 
of his rapid descents to catch a mandarin in his 
chair not far from the outer gate. The captain 
pasted the mandarin up in his chair with the 
barbarian papers, pasted the chair all over with them 
and started the bearers to carry this new advertising 
van into the city. The Chinese crowd, always alive 
to a practical joke, roared." 



CAPTURE OF YEH 26/ 

On the morning of December 28th the ships opened 
fire, and the next day an assault was made at three 
different points of the walls. The result was the 
repetition of the old story. The Chinese made no 
serious defence, and in an hour and a half the city 
walls were in our hands. Probably Yeh hoped that 
Sir Michael Seymour would retire, as he had retired 
before, but at all events he made no sign. For the 
first few days it was not deemed advisable, for fear of 
complications, for the troops to venture into the 
narrow and crooked lanes of the city, but as the 
Chinese showed no symptoms of surrender, detach- 
ments were subsequently moved into the town. No 
resistance was offered, and Pikwei, the Governor, was 
taken prisoner in his yamen, while the provincial 
treasury was seized. A considerable amount of silver 
was there found, and with the help of coolies, who 
were picked up in the street, and who readily volun- 
teered for the work, it was safely carried off to the 
English camp. The capture of Pikwei was satis- 
factory, but the great object of the search was for the 
offending Viceroy. Parkes, who had of late been his 
great opponent, heading a search party commanded 
by Captain Key, sought everywhere for him. At 
length his hiding-place was discovered. He had 
taken refuge in a small yamen in the south-west 
portion of the city. Thither the search-party hurried, 
and as they entered they found the rooms crowded 
with mandarins, who were hastily packing up their 
worldly goods preparatory to flight. In answer to 
Parkes' inquiries for Yeh, a mandarin stepped 
forward and declared himself to be the object of 



268 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

their search. Parkes, however, who had seen a 
portrait of the Viceroy, put this devoted follower 
aside, and hastened with true instinct into the back 
part of the yamen. There he arrived just in time to 
see a corpulent mandarin struggling to climb over 
the wall at the rear of the yamen. He at once 
recognised his prey, and a sailor, catching the would- 
be fugitive by the pigtail, made a captive of him. 

An investigation of Yeh's boxes revealed many 
things, and amongst others the ratified treaty with 
Great Britain, which had evidently been considered 
too insignificant to be deposited in the archives of 
Peking — a strange commentary on the value attached 
to treaties by the Chinese Government. It was 
plainly impossible that, after all that had passed, Yeh 
should be allowed to remain at large, and he was 
therefore placed on board ship, and carried off to 
exile in Calcutta, where he eventually died. A 
characteristic incident occurred while he was being 
taken to the wharf at Canton. On his way through 
the streets, escorted by his foreign captors, the coolies 
laughed and jeered at the fallen condition of their 
former oppressor. It is probable that few men have 
made themselves more detested than Yeh. His 
cruelty was excessive, and he is said to have executed 
a hundred thousand rebels during his Viceroyalty of 
four years. A day or two before the assault on the 
city, undeterred by the difficulty of his foreign policy, 
he sent four hundred of these evildoers to the 
execution ground, and, in the minds of the people, 
his memory will long be associated with all that is 
brutal and savage. Yeh, having thus been disposed 



THE GOVERNMENT OF CANTON 269 

of, it was necessary that arrangements should be 
made for the government of the city. Pikwei was 
re-estabHshed as governor, and a commission of three, 
consisting of Parkes, Colonel Holloway, of the 
Marines, and a French naval officer, was appointed 
to administer affairs. For three years, under the 
sway of these officers, a just and equitable rule was 
substituted for the tyranny which had up to that time 
disgraced the administration of justice in the city. 
The change was fully appreciated by the natives, 
who, for the first time in their existences, had their 
property guarded and their lives protected. 

This important matter having been arranged, Lord 
Elgin was free to deal with the larger question of 
our relations with China, and, as a preliminary step 
forwarded a letter to the Chief Secretary of State 
at Peking, stating the course events had taken in the 
south, and declaring the concessions which he de- 
manded before peace could be re-established. To 
this communication he received from his correspon- 
dent the following reply, which was addressed not 
to him but to the Viceroy of the Two Kiang Provinces. 
" I have perused the letter received, and have ac- 
quainted myself with its contents. In the ninth 
month of the year (1856) the English opened their 
guns on the provincial city (Canton), bombarding 
and burning buildings and dwellings, and attacked 
and stormed its forts. . . These are facts of which all 
foreigners are alike aware. The seizure of a Minister 
and the occupation of a Provincial City belonging to 
us, as on this occasion has been the case, are facts 
without parallel in the history of the past. His 



270 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

Majesty the Emperor is magnanimous and con- 
siderate. He has been pleased by a decree, which we 
have had the honour to receive, to degrade Yeh from 
the Viceroyalty of the Two Kwang Provinces for his 
maladministration, and to despatch his Excellency 
Hwang to Kwangtung as Imperial Commissioner in 
his stead, to investigate and decide with impartiality; 
and it will of course behove the English Minister to 
wait in Kwangtung, and there make his arrangements. 
No Imperial Commissioner ever conducts business at 
Shanghai (Lord Elgin had proposed a meeting at 
this place). There being a particular sphere of duty 
allotted to every official on the establishment of the 
Celestial Empire, and the principle that between them 
and the foreigner there is no intercourse, being one 
ever religiously adhered to by the servants of our 
Government of China, it would not be proper for me 
to reply in person to the English Minister. Let Your 
Excellency therefore transmit to him all that I have 
said above, and thus his letter will not be left un- 
answered," &c. 

This communication left little hope for the con- 
tinuance of peaceful negotiations, and Lord Elgin 
determined to proceed to the Peiho, from which 
coign of vantage he, however, again wrote to the 
Chief Secretary, advising him that he was ready 
to receive any properly accredited plenipotentiary 
for the discussion of matters in dispute. With their 
usual discourtesy the Emperor's Government dis- 
patched three Commissioners of very inferior rank, 
and quite unendowed with the necessary powers to 
treat. Lord Elgin naturally declined to communicate 



THE CAPTURE OF THE TAKU FORTS 2J\ 

with such men, and, rightly considering their appoint- 
ment an additional provocation, he requested Sir 
Michael Seymour to assault and take the Taku forts. 
This was no difficult task, and the way being now 
effectively open, Lord Elgin proceeded up the river 
to Tientsin. 

The capture of the Taku forts, which had been 
armed according to the most approved methods of 
Chinese military science, disconcerted the Peking 
Government not a little, and the necessity of 
appointing commissioners with plenipotentiary powers 
was forced on the stolid intelligence of the Emperor's 
advisers. In an edict issued on June ist the 
summary dismissal of the former envoys was an- 
nounced, and the appointment of Kweiliang and 
Hwashana, both officials of high standing in the 
capital, to confer with Lord Elgin at Tientsin was 
made public. The approach of the British troops to 
the neighbourhood of the capital influenced in a 
marked degree the attitude of the Commissioners, 
who at once assumed a friendly air, and discussed 
the matters in dispute in a most conciliatory spirit. 
While negotiations were in progress Kiying, who it 
will be remembered took a prominent part in the 
arrangement of the Nanking Treaty, suddenly 
appeared upon the scene with secret orders to 
induce Lord Elgin, by all the means in his power, 
to sanction the withdrawal of the British troops from 
the river. The proposal was too preposterously 
Chinese to be listened to for a moment, and Kiying 
returned to Peking to announce his failure, and to 
meet his death. The unfortunate envoy was at once 



2/2 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

thrown into prison, and as an act of grace was 
allowed to - strangle himself in his cell, instead of 
being decapitated on the execution ground. After 
much discussion a treaty was signed by which it was 
agreed that the Queen might appoint a Resident 
Minister at Peking ; that in addition to the five 
ports already open to trade, the ports of Newchwang, 
Tengchow, Formosa, Swatow, and Kiungchow in the 
island of Hainan should be opened as Treaty Ports ; 
and that the traffic in opium should be legalised. 
This Treaty was signed on the 26th of June and 
received the Emperor's ratification on the 4th of July. 
But though the deed was thus signed, sealed, and 
delivered, the Commissioners, before the ink was dry 
that testified their agreement to the clause, used 
their best endeavours to postpone the condition 
which gave the Queen the right to appoint the 
Resident Minister at the Court. The old familiar 
arguments were once more furbished up to do duty 
on this occasion. Lord Elgin was assured that the 
people of Peking were turbulent and unruly, and 
that the advent of a Minister with his staff within 
the walls of Peking would give rise to outrages and 
riots, which the Government would be unable to 
prevent, and which would embitter the relations 
between the two countries. Lord Elgin so far 
yielded to the entreaties of the Commissioners as 
to agree that for the time being the right should 
be waived, and that it would be used only tem- 
porarily in the following year, when it would become 
necessary to exchange the ratifications. 

But while the words of Kweiliang and Hwashana 



A REWARD FOR PARKES S HEAD 2/3 

were smoother than batter, war was in their hearts, 
and at the very moment when they were agreeing to 
the treaty with warm professions of friendhness, 
they were making every arrangement for renewing 
the campaign against the hated foreigners so soon as 
the occasion should offer. This compact having been 
ostensibly completed, and there being nothing further 
to detain Lord Elgin in the north, he returned to 
Hongkong, where he found that though the people 
of Canton were showing an amicable attitude towards 
the foreign garrison, the mandarins were doing their 
utmost to stir up strife, and were again offering 
rewards for Barbarian heads. In this savage barter 
a sliding scale was introduced, which varied from a 
small sum for the life of a soldier to as much as 
30,000 dollars for Parkes, dead or alive. From a 
mistaken desire to keep the peace, the garrison had 
hitherto been confined within the city walls, and 
liberty was thus given to the neighbouring villagers 
to concentrate forces and establish camps, preparatory 
to an attack on the British. It was well known that 
a number of these associations were within the 
immediate neighbourhood of the city, and it was 
eventually thought desirable to employ expeditions to 
dissipate the forces of these would-be disturbers of the 
peace. A successful expedition of this kind was made 
against the "ninety-six" villages on the north of the 
city, and Shektsing, a place of considerable strength, 
was carried after some show of opposition on the part 
of the local troops. The effect of this sortie was most 
wholesome, and an armed visit to the formerly riotous 
town of Fayuan, not only did not meet with opposi- 

19 



274 THE SECOND CHINA WAR 

tion, but was cordially received. Even in those days 
the importance of the West River, which has lately 
been opened to trade, was appreciated by Parkes and 
others, and at their instigation it was determined to 
explore in force the waters of that important stream. 
Again the expedition met with a ready reception, and 
successfully explored the river as far as Wuchow Fu, 
the highest town on its banks which has yet been 
opened as a Treaty Port. The effect of these military 
parades surpassed expectation, and reacted so favour- 
ably on the streets of Canton that they became as 
safe as the thoroughfares of London. 




X 

THE WAR OF i860 

In the followin^^ year (1859) it became necessary 
to send to Peking an ambassador to exchange the 
ratifications of the treaty, and Lord Elgin's brother, 
Mr. Bruce, who was chosen for the office, arrived at 
Shanghai in due course. He had been warned by 
Lord Malmesbury, the Foreign Secretary, that the 
Chinese would probably use every endeavour to 
dissuade him from going to the capital, and he 
was instructed to insist at all costs on this clause 
of the treaty being fulfilled. He had no sooner 
landed on the wharf at Shanghai than the truth 
of Lord Malmesbury's words became apparent. 
Kweiliang and Hwashana were already waiting for 
him, in the vain hope of being able to persuade him 
to forego his purpose. At the same time reports 
reached him that warlike preparations were being 
made at Taku to prevent his passing up the Peiho. 
His duty, however, was plain, and by an arrangement 
with Admiral Hope, who commanded on the station, 
a considerable fleet accompanied the Ambassador to 
the mouth of the Peiho. On reaching the anchorage, 

275 



2/6 THE WAR OF 1860 

Mr. Bruce despatched an interpreter with a letter 
addressed to the commandant of the fort, announcing 
his arrival, when it at once became plain that the 
warlike rumours which had lately filled the air were 
well founded. The interpreter found the mouth of 
the river studded with heavy iron stakes, while huge 
chains were stretched across its waters from shore to 
shore. The guns of the forts were screened by mats, 
but it was plain that they were there in full comple- 
ment and were well manned. The crowd that came 
down to the wharf to meet the boat, refused to allow 
the interpreter to land, but a man who appeared to 
be in authority, promised that by the morrow the 
stakes should be removed so as to admit the ships 
into the river. No dependence was placed on this 
man's word, more especially as it was abundantly 
obvious that the Chinese meant to fight. 

On the following day Admiral Hope, with a force 
of eleven vessels including gunboats, steamed towards 
the river's mouth. Some of the stakes had already 
been removed by H.M.S. Opossum^ but the booms 
remained, and the leading gunboats no sooner struck 
these obstacles than the guns from the forts poured 
a storm of shot and shell upon them. So terrible 
was the fire that two gunboats were quickly sunk, 
and all were more or less seriously damaged. The 
Admiral was wounded, and many of the officers 
and men were killed. It being plainly impossible 
to force the passage by water, a detachment con- 
sisting of marines and engineers was landed in the 
hope that they might be able to capture the forts by 
storm. With desperate gallantry they struggled to 



THE DEFEAT AT TAKU 2// 

make their way through the deep mud which lay on 
the waterside of the forts. At every step they sunk 
above their knees while the troops from the walls poured 
a destructive fire upon them. The scaling ladders 
were broken by the fire, the men's rifles were in many 
cases choked with mud, and wide ditches half full of 
water added a further difficulty in the way of their 
enterprise. Darkness fell while they were in this 
predicament, and reluctantly they were obliged to 
retire to their boats. In this engagement three 
gunboats were lost, and three hundred men were 
killed and wounded. It being plain that to renew 
the attack with a thus diminished force would be 
inexcusable rashness, the fleet returned to Shanghai 
to await re-enforcements. The news of the defeat of 
the English was received with exultation at Peking, 
and exercised an unfortunate influence on the natives 
at the Treaty Ports. In England it produced fierce 
indignation, and by all parties it was recognised that 
it would be necessary to enforce on the Chinese the 
lesson that treachery, in dealing with a friendly 
power, is an act of barbarism, and must inevitably 
meet with punishment. As the Minister of France 
who had also a treaty in his pocket requiring ratifi- 
cation had equally with Mr. Bruce been refused 
admission to the Peiho river, the two Governments 
agreed to make a joint invasion of the " Middle 
Kingdom." Shortly after this arrangement had been 
come to, that is to say in March, i860, Mr. Bruce 
presented an ultimatum to the Chinese Government, 
calling upon them within thirty days to make repara- 
tion for the treacherous attack at the Taku forts, 



278 THE WAR OF 1 860 

and further to fulfil both the letter and the spirit of the 
treaty. The reply to his communication was made 
in the same circuitous way in which the answer had 
lately been made to a somewhat similar letter from 
Lord Elgin. A Grand Secretary of State replied to 
the Viceroy of the two Kiang provinces, and directed 
that official to forward a copy of the despatch to Mr. 
Bruce. The language of the reply was marked by 
more than usual Chinese hauteur, and ignored alto- 
gether the obligations which Mr. Bruce attempted 
to fasten on the Government. 

Meanwhile, Sir Hope Grant, who had been 
appointed to command the British force, arrived 
at Hongkong, at the head of an army of thirteen 
thousand men. The French contingent, consisting of 
seven thousand rank and file, and commanded by 
General Montauban, arrived about the same time. 
So soon as the arrangements of the campaign had 
been completed the allied forces sailed northwards 
and rendezvoused at Talienwan, the port which has 
lately been so much in discussion. Here the two 
commanders discussed the plan of campaign. Sir 
Hope Grant wishing to begin by attacking Pehtang 
a fortified town about eight miles north of the Peiho 
and to take the Taku forts by a circuitous route in 
rear, while Montauban considered that to land in 
the mud to the south of Taku would be the shortest 
way to victory. The British plan of attack was so 
plainly preferable that it was finally adopted, much 
to the consternation and surprise of the Chinese 
commanders, whose limited intelligences would have 
laid it down that the Peiho being the recognised 



SANKOLINSIN S TACTICS 2'jg 

road to Peking, the Allies were in duty bound to 
begin the game by an attack on the Taku forts. 
Fully possessed with this opinion they had made little 
effort to fortify Pehtang, and the chief enemy that 
the troops found on landing was the deep mud, 
through which they were obliged to flounder in 
order to reach the raised causeway, which connected 
Pehtang with the neighbourhood of the Peiho river. 
Sankolinsin, a cousin of the Emperor, was at the 
time in command at Taku and in the neighbourhood, 
and though fairly taken by surprise by the descent of 
the Allies on the coast, had the assurance to report to 
his Imperial kinsman that he had purposely allowed 
the Barbarians to land. He explained his design by 
saying that foreigners were acquatic creatures, and 
though formidable on board ship, were helpless on 
shore. His plan was, therefore, to entice them from 
their ships, and to overwhelm them when thus 
robbed of the support in which their great strength 
lay. 

The struggle at Taku was recognised as of vital 
importance, and Hang Fu, the Viceroy of the 
province, took up his quarters at the village of 
Taku that he might the more readily superintend 
the warlike operations. The disposition of Sanko- 
linsin's troops was at first such as to appear that he 
really had faith in the plan which he had unfolded 
to his Imperial master. As the Allies advanced from 
Pehtang, small detachments of Manchu cavalry 
appeared on the scene on all sides, and as hastily 
retired, as though to induce a further advance. If 
such was their design they were not disappointed, for 



280 THE WAR OF 1860 

with set purpose the Allies marched on steadily to the 
object of their attack, the Taku forts. So soon as 
the news of the landing at Pehtang reached Sanko- 
linsin, he ordered the construction of a number of 
entrenchments to protect the rear of the forts, which 
like most Chinese fortifications were strong on the 
side from which attack was expected but weak else- 
where. These entrenchments with the neighbouring 
village of Sinho were flanked and protected by a 
huge body of cavalry, who owed their full equip- 
ment to one of those dishonest subterfuges which 
excite no astonishment in the Chinese army. 
Twenty thousand of these horsemen had been 
collected, on paper, in the neighbourhood of Peking, 
and for this number without deduction the general 
in command regularly drew full pay and rations. On 
the {qss[ occasions during the year when it was 
necessary to testify to the existence of the force, it 
was his habit to enlist men and hire horses for the 
time being. Being suddenly ordered on service he 
resorted to this time-honoured expedient, and when 
he had thus extemporised a full muster he marched 
his unsuspecting victims off, on pain of death, to face 
the Allies. Curiously enough these men fought well, 
and on one or two occasions charged up to the very 
guns. They further helped to defend the entrench- 
ments with courage, but, in the congenial company of 
the infantry battalions, on the first reverse they melted 
away and left Sinho unprotected. The rapid advance 
of the Allies was not according to the methods of 
Chinese warfare, and when the Barbarians presented 
themselves before the further village of Tangku, the 



PRELIMINARY SKIRMISHES 28 1 

Chinese troops were enjoying their breakfast. So 
quickly was the affair over and with such speed did 
the Chinese soldiers run, that the dishes on the tables 
were still warm when our hungry troops took the 
chairs vacated by the flying enemy. 

There had been some differences of opinion 
between Sir Hope Grant and General Montauban 
as to the plan of attack on the forts, Sir Hope 
Grant being of the opinion that one of the forts on 
the north side of the river was the key of the position, 
while Montauban would have liked to have crossed 
the river and stormed the southern fort Montauban 
was a gallant soldier but a bad strategist, as was 
constantly proved during the campaign, and in the 
present case the result fully justified Sir Hope Grant's 
view of the position. 

From the Chinese standpoint the position was 
rapidly becoming critical, and Hang Fu resorted to 
the usual Chinese practice of attempting to gain 
time by drawing the British Minister into a corres- 
pondence. With childlike simplicity he wrote to ask 
the reason " of our hostile appearance at Pehtang, 
while the two nations were still at peace, and on terms 
of friendly relationship ; if any questions did require 
settlement, he begged that Lord Elgin would appoint 
some time and place for a meeting, so that they might 
be amicably discussed and arranged." The only 
answer Lord Elgin vouchsafed to this communi- 
cation, and to many others which followed on it, was 
that " the only terms on which he would consent to 
stay naval and military proceedings, were the un- 
qualified acceptance of the ultimatum sent to the 



282 THE WAR OF 1860 

Court of Peking by Mr. Bruce, and the surrender of 
the Peiho forts into our hands." As Hang Fu care- 
fully ignored these conditions in all his letters, the 
Allies continued their advance against the Taku forts. 
These " were surrounded by a thick mud wall, pierced, 
about ten feet from the top, for artillery ; gingals were 
mounted on the upper parapet, which was also loop- 
holed ; surrounding the walls on the inside were 
covered buildings resembling in some degree case- 
mates, but they were not shell proof ; a high cavalier 
rose in the centre of the fort, mounting three or 
four very heavy guns, the embrasures facing seaward, 
but the guns could be slewed round in any direction ; 
around the outer wall were two, in some cases three, 
mud ditches, from twenty to thirty feet broad, full of 
water, the ground between the ditches being protected 
by sharp-pointed bamboo stakes driven deep into the 
earth, and placed so close to each other as not to 
admit of a person standing between them. The 
south side of the northern forts rested on the Peiho, 
which flowed at the base of the wall." The pieces 
of ordnance which manned the embrasures were 
mostly of native construction, though some few 
proved to be English guns which had been recovered 
from the sunken gunboats of the year before. 

The attack began by an artillery fire against the 
walls of the fort. This had not lasted long when an 
alarming explosion occurred within the mud defences. 
To onlookers this accident appeared to involve the 
destruction of the fort. This was not the case, how- 
ever, and when the dust and smoke cleared away, 
the Chinese soldiers turned again to their guns in the 



284 THE WAR OF 1860 

vain hope of checking the advancing foes. When it 
was considered that the fire had made storming 
possible, orders were given for the assault. In pre- 
paration for the campaign, a native coolie corps, 
several thousand strong, had been enlisted at 
Canton, and had been carefully drilled in the duties 
which were expected of them. Though the men 
perfectly understood that they would be called upon 
to assist in a hostile invasion of their native land, they 
showed every alacrity in the service, and it was 
evident that patriotism with them weighed nothing 
in the scale against the regular pay and ample rations 
which they received from their country's enemies. 
During the artillery duel before the fort these men 
had stood, with the scaling ladders, ready to advance 
to the walls, and at the word of command ran readily 
forward and planting their ladders against the fort 
helped the storming party up. The result was " as 
per before," and though the Chinese garrison fought 
with some bravery they were speedily vanquished. 
So soon as the garrison of the outer northern fort 
(there were two large forts on the north bank of the 
river and three on the south) saw that the Allies had 
secured this first position, they hoisted white flags, and 
allowed the Allied troops to march in without firing 
a shot. A curious sight met the eyes of the victors 
as they entered. Two thousand men were seated on 
the ground who neither moved nor spoke. " They had 
thrown away their arms and had divested themselves 
of all uniform or distinctive badges that could dis- 
tinguish them as being soldiers." 

These men were made prisoners, but doubt was 



THE VICEROYS TREACHERY 28$ 

still felt as to the attitude of the garrisons on the 
southern side of the river. It is true that white flags 
had been hoisted on the forts on that side, but so 
much uncertainty existed as to the meaning of these 
symbols in Chinese hands that it was thought 
advisable to communicate with the Viceroy and to 
receive the submission of the fortress from him before 
crossing the river in force. Parkes, Loch, and Major 
Anson were therefore sent across to Taku to find the 
redoubtable Hang Fu. This astute official received 
them hospitably, showing at the same time a 
suspicious inclination to detain them as long as 
possible. It subsequently transpired that his inten- 
tions were really the very opposite to his professions, 
and that while plying them with tea and sweetmeats 
his emissaries were engaged in searching for Sanko- 
linsin, with a view to making his visitors prisoners. 
Fortunately for them Sankolinsin, after the fall of 
the northern forts, had mounted his horse and ridden 
to Peking. In a memorial which at this time he 
addressed to the throne, he admitted that the Bar- 
barians had captured the forts, but besought the 
Emperor not to be the least alarmed, as his troops 
were still well able to protect the capital from the 
presence of the presumptuous foe. When Hang Fu's 
emissaries returned to their master and reported the 
flight of the defeated general, he allowed his foreign 
guests to depart, who on their way back discovered 
that a small force had already, during their absence, 
taken possession of the southern forts. 

The road to Tientsin was now open, and the 
Admiral lost no time in clearing away the obstruc- 



286 



THE WAR OF 1860 



tions at the mouth of the river. These were of an 
extremely formidable character. Huge pointed iron 
stakes, each several tons in weight, were securely 
fastened in the mud, while two huge booms, kept 
afloat by immense earthen water-jars, made the 
entrance to the river impossible. With much diffi- 
culty these were removed, and the smaller vessels ot 




A PEASANT WOMAN AND CHILDREN. 



the fleet peaceably steamed by the embrasures which 
had wrought such havoc in the preceding year. 
Meanwhile Hang Fu had started for Tientsin, where 
he met Hanki, the late Hoppo of Canton, and 
Wangts'uan, who had been hastily despatched from 
Peking to stay, if possible, the advance of the 
foreigners. One great annoyance experienced by the 



THE NATIVES FRIENDLY 28/ 

mandarins at this time was the attitude which the 
natives assumed towards the invaders. In 1858, 
when Lord Elgin first went up to Tientsin, the people 
in the villages through which he had passed had 
fallen on their knees before him, and had presented 
propitiatory offerings to mitigate his supposed wrath. 
Their experience had taught them, however, that so 
long as they maintained a peaceful demeanour they 
had nothing to fear from Englishmen, and on this 
occasion when he and his colleague, Baron Gros, 
advanced through the same hamlets the people had, 
without cringing or undue adulation, offered the 
produce of their fields and gardens readily for sale. 
A similar attitude adopted by the men of the Coolie 
corps was referred to in a memorial by Sankolinsin, 
which was discovered in the Archives of the Summer 
Palace, in which he stated that the Allied forces were 
for the most part composed of Cantonese, who had 
joined the invaders for the sake of profit ; and he 
recommended that an offer of additional pay and 
perquisites should be made to bribe them to come 
over in a body to the Imperial side. Parkes, who 
was sent in advance to Tientsin, found the people 
there of the same mind with the villagers. They 
eagerly responded to his inquiries after provisions, 
and voluntarily formed a Committee of Supply to 
provide commissariat stores for the army. 

At Tientsin Hang Fu was on the watch for Lord 
Elgin, and no sooner had the steamer carrying the 
Ambassador anchored off the Bund than the Viceroy 
appeared, and invited him to become his guest 
during his stay in the city. This was a piece of cool 



288 THE WAR OF 1860 

impertinence of which only a Chinaman could have 
been guilty, and Lord Elgin curtly informed him that 
the Allied troops being now in occupation of Tientsin, 
he should take up his residence in the building which 
suited him best. The advance of the Barbarian 
forces had produced some consternation at Peking, 
and the Emperor despatched the Grand Secretary 
Kweiliang, who had been one of the signatories of the 
treaty of 1 8 58, to join Hang Fu in arranging a peace 
with the foreigners. Without any loss of time the 
Commissioners sought to open negotiations with Lord 
Elgin, who met their overtures by replying that the 
conditions on which he was prepared to suspend 
hostilities were as follows : " First, an apology for 
the attack on the Allied forces at Peiho. Second, 
the ratification and execution of the Treaty of 
Tientsin. Third, the payment of an indemnity to 
the Allies for the expenses of the naval and military 
preparations." 

With apparent readiness the Commissioners agreed 
to these terms, but raised, as has always been their 
wont, a number of objections on matters of detail. 
It is a recognised practice among the Chinese in 
similar cases to send in the first instance Com- 
missioners who are ostensibly deputed to make 
peace, but who are denied the necessary plenipoten- 
tiary powers. The object of this manoeuvre is plain. 
Should the Commissioners agree to any terms 
distasteful to the Emperor, it is open to him to 
ignore the agreement, on the plea that his envoys 
had no power to pledge him to any terms. During 
the late war with Japan two of these futile missions 



NEGOTIATIONS FOR PEACE 289 

were sent to negotiate peace before full powers were 
granted to Li Hungchang, and in the same way, 
when it became necessary to examine the credentials 
of Kweiliang and his colleague, it was found that 
they had no power whatever to conclude a convention. 
Lord Elgin, therefore, declined further negotiations 
with them, and continued his march northwards, at 
the same time giving them notice that he would 
listen to no further overtures of any kind, until he 
had arrived at Tungchow in the neighbourhood of 
Peking. 

On the 9th of September Lord Elgin and Sir Hope 
Grant left Tientsin, and a day or two later reached 
Hosiwu, which stands about half way between 
Tientsin and the capital. Here they were met by a 
letter from Tsai, Prince of I, who with two colleagues 
announced his arrival to treat. At the same time 
he took occasion to add his supreme princely astonish- 
ment at the advance of the Allies beyond Tientsin, 
and strongly urged the British Minister to give the 
necessary orders for the troops to retreat. This 
proposal was typical of the native folly of the Chinese, 
and met with the answer which it deserved. The 
Prince was told that no negotiations would be entered 
upon before the arrival of the Allies at Tungchow. 
As time was precious, however, and as the autumn 
was already coming on apace, Lord Elgin determined 
to send Messrs. Wade and Parkes in advance to 
Tungchow, there to negotiate a preliminary conven- 
tion with the Commissioners. The Commissioners 
received these envoys with cordiality, and the Prince 
of I, who was possessed of a fine presence and courtly 

20 



290 THE WAR OF 1860 

bearing, treated them with especial civiHty. After a 
discussion of eight hours' duration, terms were agreed 
upon, and "it was arranged that the allied armies 
were to advance within ten or twelve miles of 
Tungchow, where they were to remain, while the 
ambassadors proceeded to Peking accompanied by a 
large escort. It was agreed also that Mr. Parkes was 
to return on Monday to Tungchow to make a few 
final arrangements." 

On the day appointed Parkes, accompanied by 
Messrs. Loch, de Norman, an attache, Bowlby, the 
Times correspondent, the Quartermaster-General of 
Cavalry, Colonel Walker, and Mr. Thompson of the 
Commissariat, with an escort of six troopers of the 
King's Dragoon Guards, and twenty Sowars of Fane's 
Horse, under the command of Lieutenant Anderson, 
started for Tungchow. On the road they met with 
some cavalry pickets which retired as they advanced, 
and their way was once stopped by a mandarin at 
the head of a small force of cavalry, who however let 
let them pass so soon as he became aware of their 
mission. Unexpectedly,, however, the Commissioners, 
who before had been so genial, raised countless and 
vexatious objections to many of the points which 
had been agreed upon, and more especially to the 
reception of the Ambassador at Peking, and the 
delivery of the Letter of Credence to the Emperor. 
"The tone adopted by the Prince of I and other 
Commissioners was almost offensive, and they scarcely 
cared to conceal the repugnance with which they 
viewed us, and their disinclination to come to terms." 

After a lengthy discussion, however, an arrange- 




SIR THOMAS FRANCIS WADE, K.C.B. 



292 THE WAR OF 1 860 

ment was arrived at, and at twelve o'clock at night 
Parkes returned to his rooms, with a draft agreement 
in his pocket. Meanwhile Sankolinsin had been 
busily employed. He was deeply concerned to 
avenge his defeats at Taku, and he thought that 
chance had now thrown the opportunity into his 
hands. In conjunction with the Commissioners he 
arranged that the camping-ground, which it was 
proposed to allot to the Allied troops, should be so 
situated as to enable him to surround it with his 
warriors. The force under his command consisted of 
eighty thousand men, and he felt confident that in a 
surprise attack he would be able to overwhelm, once 
and for all, the four or five thousand Barbarians who 
were presumptuous enough to oppose themselves to 
him. Being well aware that Parkes would be early 
on the field, he moved his troops with secrecy and 
despatch to their allotted posts. But not so secretly 
as to conceal their movements entirely from the 
observation of Parkes and Loch, who had ridden out 
between five and six o'clock in the morning to 
examine the camping ground. On the three sides of 
the allotted space men were posted behind every 
hillock, in every grove of trees, and in the deeper 
water courses. Such unusual and secret preparations 
at once induced Parkes. to recognise that treachery 
was intended, and he asked Loch to ride forward to 
apprise Sir Hope Grant of the ambush which was 
being laid for him, while he returned to Tungchow to 
demand from the Commissioners an explanation of 
the threatening aspect of affairs, and to warn those 
who had been left behind of their danger. 



PARKES AND LOCH 293 

The Prince of I, whom Parkes after some difficulty 
discovered, had now quite thrown off his disguise of 
the evening before, and curtly informed his unwelcome 
visitor that until the question of delivering the Letter 
of Credence was settled " there could be no peace, 
there must be war." Loch, with that rare loyalty 
which we are accustomed to regard as belonging to 
the Anglo-Saxon race, asked and obtained permission 
to return to Tungchow "to rejoin Parkes and the 
others, to urge on them the utmost expedition, and, 
if possible, to endeavour to find some other road by 
which we could extricate ourselves." 

Captain Brabazon of the artillery and two Sikhs 
accompanied him, and after experiencing some diffi- 
culty in getting through the Chinese lines the party 
reached Tungchow. Having collected all their 
fellows, they returned together in the direction of the 
British camp. By this time Sankolinsin had given 
up all pretensions to concealment, and the escape of 
the Englishmen was constantly impeded by the 
masses of troops which were marching southward. 
The camping ground itself was fully occupied, and 
Parkes and his friends at last found their way barred 
by a strong detachment of Chinese troops. The 
Chinese officer in command refused to yield them 
passage, and informed Parkes that his only chance of 
safety lay in hi-s being able to get a pass through the 
lines from Sankolinsin. As this appeared to be the 
only hope of safety Parkes and Loch, taking a Sikh 
with them, followed the mandarin to Sankolinsin's 
tent. 

That chieftain greeted them with triumphant jeers 



294 I'HE WAR OF 1860 

and laughter, and his followers, taking their cue from, 
their chief, dragged the foreigners off their horses and 
buffeted them on the head, while others rubbed their 
faces in the dirt. Sankolinsin shared the opinion of 
the Commissioners and others that Parkes was able, 
if he chose to exercise his powers, to stop the fighting 
at any moment, and he called upon him now to issue 
an order for the arrest of the Allied forces. Parkes 
naturally refused so absurd a request, and Sanko- 
linsin, having lost his temper at meeting with this 
opposition, would probably have given vent to 
violence had not an officer hastily ridden up with 
the announcement that his presence was required at 
the front. Meanwhile the Chinese had made prisoners 
of the rest of the party with the exception of Colonel 
Walker, Mr. Thompson, and the men of the King's 
Dragoon Guards who had gradually become separated 
from their comrades. This detachment, finding that 
the Chinese soldiers were becoming aggressive and 
violent in their demeanour, charged through their 
ranks and escaped to the British lines. Immediately 
following on their flight the battle began, and the 
sound of the guns was a signal for Parkes and Loch 
to be carried off in search of the Prince of I. In a 
springless wooden cart and tightly bound they were 
driven to Tungchow, through the streets of which 
city they were carried in triumph, amid the jeers and 
insults of the people who the day before had offered 
them obsequious politeness. But the Prince of I was 
not to be found, and was reported to have started for 
Peking. The prisoners were, therefore, hurried on 
the road after him. It was said, however, that he 



A TREACHEROUS CAPTURE 295 

had subsequently returned to Tungchow, and in this 
uncertainty the guard deemed it best to take the 
prisoners before General Juilin, who commanded 
another army on the Peking side of Tungchow. 
This man behaved to the captives with the utmost 
brutality, and, after subjecting them to the grossest 
insults, ordered their removal to a small temple in 
the neighbourhood, where they were searched, and 
everything valuable taken from them, including 
papers. After a short rest they were made to 
kneel in the courtyard before a posse of mandarins, 
several of whom they recognised as having been 
among the entourage of the Commissioners on the 
day before. But bad news from Changchiawan, the 
field of battle, was beginning to arrive, and their 
inquisitors suddenly rode off to effect their own 
escapes, leaving their victims to the tender mercies 
of the soldiers, who showed every disposition to 
behead them. Eventually, however, they were 
again thrown bound into a cart, and were driven 
off to Peking. Any one who has had the mis- 
fortune to travel in a Chinese cart, even when all the 
alleviations possible have been brought into requisi- 
tion, will readily understand the intense agony which 
must have been endured by men bound as the 
prisoners were, and driven quickly over the terrible 
road which separates Tungchow from Peking. The 
miseries through which they had gone since their 
capture were terrible, but the acme of mental torture 
was reached when they were driven into the court- 
yard of the Hsing Pu, or Board of Punishments. 
" This is indeed worse than I expected," said Parkes. 



296 THE WAR OF 1860 

<' We are in the worst prison in China ; we are in the 
hands of the torturers ; this is the Board of Punish- 
ments." 

This gloomy building has its foundation in the 
very earliest records of the Chinese race, and native 
historians find references to the precursors of the 
horrible prison which now disgraces the capital of 
China, in the reigns of sovereigns who ruled the 
Empire even before fable developed into history. 
The officials, doubtless acting under orders, assumed 
from the first a most uncompromising attitude 
towards their foreign captives. They bound them 
with chains, they subjected them to every kind of 
indignity, and added a further cruelty by separating 
them. Loch gives the following description of his 
first entrance into his dungeon : " My gaoler went up 
to the door, and gave three heavy blows, crying out 
at the same time. A most unearthly yell from the 
inside was the reply, the door was thrown open, and 
I found myself in the presence of, and surrounded 
by, as savage a lot of half-naked demons as I had 
ever beheld ; they were nearly all the lowest caste 
of criminals imprisoned for murder and the most 
serious offences. There were about fifty in all, of 
whom some eighteen or twenty were chained like 
myself, but with far lighter irons. A few of the 
prisoners were better dressed than the others." The 
capture and imprisonment of the captives had been 
a subject of congratulation and rejoicing to the 
Emperor and his advisers, who from their safe 
retreat in the hunting palace at Jehol in Mongolia, 
whither the " Son of Heaven " had fled on the 



SCENE IN THE BOARD OF PUNISHMENTS 297 

approach of the AlHed armies, still directed the 
affairs of State. At this time the war party was in 
power, and being composed of men who were quite 
ignorant of foreigners, and who were possessed with 
an overwhelming idea of the power and prestige of 
China, had with light hearts nailed their flag to 
the mast of no compromise. It was still their belief 
that Parkes could put an end to the march of the 
troops if he pleased, and if he did not so please, 
they were quite content to put him to death and to 
allow the army to fight the matter out. Under the 
inspiration of these men the President of the Board 
of Punishments and his satellites indulged in every 
insolence and cruelty towards their prisoners, and if 
they stopped short of actual physical torture, it was 
only with the idea that it might diminish the possible 
usefulness of their victims. It is happily not often 
that foreigners become acquainted with the insides 
of Chinese prisons, and no apology is therefore 
needed for dwelling for a moment on one of the 
rooms in which Loch was examined on his knees 
and which recalls the horrors of the Inquisition. 
" On one side of this dungeon," Loch writes, " was 
a table behind which three mandarins were seated. 
There were various iron implements lying on the 
table, and the walls were hung with chains and other 
disagreeable instruments the use of which it was 
unpleasant too closely to investigate. On one side 
of the room was a low bench, at each end of which 
was a small windlass, round which a rope was coiled ; 
the use to which this machine might be applied 
admitted of no doubt." For ten days the officials 



298 THE WAR OF 1860 

kept their prisoners closely confined in their loath- 
some dens, and at the end of that time circumstances 
arose which induced them to move Parkes and Loch 
to a temple in the north-west quarter of the city, 
where they were well treated and allowed their 
liberty within the four walls of the building. 

In order to make the story of this period clear, it 
is necessary now to revert to the proceedings on the 
day of the capture of the prisoners. It will be 
remembered that the battle of Changchiawan was 
opening when the supreme act of treachery was 
perpetrated. Unfortunately for Sankolinsin's scheme, 
events were precipitated before his arrangements 
could be brought to perfection, and the unexpected 
advance of the Allies somewhat disconcerted his 
plans. The enormous force of Tartar cavalry under 
his command, however, did their utmost to check 
the onslaught of the Barbarians. They charged re- 
peatedly and with considerable courage, while the 
artillery served their guns with steadiness and effect. 
But they were quite unable to resist the fire and 
cavalry of the invaders, and after making a con- 
siderable stand, they tottered, turned, and fled, 
leaving seventy - four guns in the hands of the 
victors and countless dead upon the field. So soon 
as the fate of the day was decided, Sankolinsin took 
to flight, and only stayed to rally his fugitive forces 
when he joined hands with Juilin on the Peking side 
of Tungchow. A day or two later these combined 
forces suffered another crushing defeat at Palichiao, 
or "Eight-mile Bridge," a spot which is emphasised 
in the French annals as having supplied the title of 




PAGODA AT YUAN-MING-YUAxNT, NEAR PEKING, 



300 THE WAR OF 1860 

Count de Palichiao which was conferred on General 
Montauban. 

After the flight of the Emperor to Jehol Prince 
Kung, his brother, was practically left in command 
on the spot. He took up his residence at Yuan- 
ming-yuan, the Summer Palace, in company with the 
dowager Empress, and there received from time to 
time the dreary reports of his country's defeats. 
The news of the disaster at Changchiawan no sooner 
reached him than he recognised the wisdom of doing 
his utmost to prevent, if possible, an attack on the 
capital. He hurried, therefore, to meet the enemy^ 
and despatched in advance a letter to Lord Elgin 
stating that he held plenipotentiary powers for the 
negotiation of peace. At the same time, he had the 
temerity to urge a request for a temporary suspen- 
sion of hostilities. Lord Elgin's answer was short. 
He gave his correspondent to understand that he 
would not for an instant entertain any proposals for 
peace until the prisoners were given up, and he 
warned the Prince of the serious consequences that 
would be entailed on the city of Peking, and even 
on the fortunes of the dynasty itself, if in their blind 
folly the Chinese compelled the Allies to attack the 
capital. With this rebuff Kung returned to Yuan- 
ming-yuan, and, resigning all hope of peace, gave 
directions for strengthening and defending the walls 
of Peking. Meanwhile the invaders marched un- 
opposed along the east face of the city, the French 
being on the right, in company with some of the 
British cavalry. There had been some talk of 
marching on Yuan-ming-yuan, and the French, 



THE FRENCH IN YUAN-.U/NG-YUAN 3OI 

perhaps regarding the arrangement as more de- 
finite than it really was, crossed the rear of the 
British unobserved, and marched straight on the 
palace. This move was so sudden that Prince 
Kung and the Dowager Empress were yet in the 
palace when the French appeared before the gates. 
With all haste the Imperial personages escaped out 
of the back, leaving a party of eunuchs and one or 
two mandarins to watch proceedings. One of these 
officials, Wang by name, related to the writer his 
experiences. He took possession of a pavilion at 
the back of the premises and there waited on events. 
The first visitors who intruded on his privacy were 
two or three Sikhs who had followed the French to 
the Imperial quarters. " These men," said Wang, 
" looked round the room and took anything they 
fancied, but left me unmolested. Presently there 
entered some French soldiers, who took the pipe 
out of my mouth, broke off the jade stone mouth- 
piece and pocketed it. I then thought it was time 
to go, and I followed Prince Kung to a temple on 
the hills to the north of the palace." 

Yuan-ming-yuan was the favourite palace of the 
Emperor. It was there where he sought relief from 
the cares of State, and it was there that some of the 
prisoners had been taken and had been cruelly 
tortured. The grounds covered an enormous extent, 
and countless pavilions of all forms and shapes stood 
on every spot where the natural lie of the land or 
the skill of landscape gardeners yielded appropriate 
sites. The gardens were bright with every kind of 
flowering shrubs and plants. Quaint bridges crossed 



302 THE WAR OF 1860 

the streams and lakes and led to buildings full of 
rare and priceless objects. There were collected the 
choicest specimens of porcelain from Kinteching, 
bronzes from Soochow, and jade ornaments from the 
quarries of Central Asia, while curiosities from 
Europe • — watches and clocks from France, and 
objects of a more prosaic nature from England, as, 
for instance, the carriage presented by George III. 
to the Emperor Ch'ienlung — thronged the halls. 
All these stores of wealth were now at the mercy 
of the Allies, and for some days the palaces were 
looted without check by the troops of both armies. 
This last catastrophe disposed Prince Kung to listen 
with a more willing ear to Lord Elgin's demand for 
the surrender of one of the gates of the city, and 
after some show of hesitation he found it wise to 
yield to circumstances. It had been made clear to 
him that there could be no peace so long as his 
demand was refused, and though to submit to it 
was as gall and wormwood to him, he finally gave 
way, and handed over the Anting Gate, on the north 
face of the city, to the Allied commanders. 

Meanwhile the Council of State sitting at Jehol had 
maintained a resolutely anti-foreign attitude. While 
the troops were advancing from Tungchow on Peking, 
the Emperor's advisers had been discussing the fate 
which was to be meted out to Parkes and Loch. In 
their headstrong folly they eventually determined, 
against the advice of Prince Kung, that they should 
die, and a messenger was despatched to Peking with 
a warrant for their immediate execution. Happily 
the peace party at Peking, consisting of Prince Kung, 



RELEASE OF PARKES AND LOCH 303 

Hang-ki, and others, had their spies at Jehol, and 
the instant that the death warrant was signed a swift 
courier was sent with all haste to the Prince to inform 
him of the fact. This fleet-footed envoy arrived at 
Peking early in the morning of the 8th, bringing news 
that the Imperial messenger was following closely at 
his heels. If the prisoners were to be saved, there- 
fore, there was no time to be lost, and Hang-ki at 
once went to the temple to which they had been re- 
moved, and announced to them the glad tidings of 
their immediate release. Two days previously this 
same officer had solemnly stated to them that their 
execution was fixed, first of all, for that same evening, 
and then for the next morning. This further mes- 
sage of their proposed release was, therefore, received 
by them with some reserve, and Parkes, assuming an 
indifference which he was far from feeling, at once 
renewed a conversation on the motion of the moon, 
which had been cut short on the previous day. Hang- 
ki's manner and impatience, however, soon convinced 
him that his tidings were really true, and at two 
o'clock in the day this conviction was confirmed by 
the appearance in the courtyard of a covered cart, 
into which the prisoners, who were now to be free 
men, were hastily placed and sent out of the city. 
Being in ignorance as to the exact position of the 
Allied forces, they were uncertain which way to direct 
the driver,but going towards Yuan-ming-yuan they fell 
in with a British guard, and at once had the satis- 
faction of feeling that they were at last safe indeed. 
At the same time eight sowars of Fane's Horse and 
one French officer were restored to liberty. The 



304 THE WAR OF 1860 

remaining prisoners had perished in the hands of their 
torturers, and their remains, which were handed over 
by the Chinese to the AUied Commanders, were buried 
with all honours in the Russian Cemetery at Peking. 
A quarter of an hour after the cart which carried 
Parkes and Loch had passed out of the city gate, the 
warrant arrived for their execution ; and as Hang- 
ki afterwards said to Parkes, "If your deliverance 
had been only delayed a quarter of an hour even 
Prince Kung's influence could not have saved you." 

The stories which the recovered prisoners had to 
tell of their captivity, and the sight of the cruelly 
mangled bodies of those who had died in their dun- 
geons, aroused such deep and violent indignation at 
the treachery and brutality of the Chinese, that Lord 
Elgin felt that some signal punishment should be 
inflicted on the Government. In this conviction he 
wrote to Prince Kung to inform him that as a protest 
against the infamous conduct of the ruling powers he 
had determined to destroy the Summer Palace. In 
meting out his punishment he was guided by the 
principle that the penalty should be inflicted on the 
Emperor and his personal belonging, rather than on 
the people who were comparatively innocent of the 
crime. Due notice having been given, a force was 
marched into the palace, and fire was set to the 
buildings, which were speedily laid level with the 
ground. For several days the conflagration raged, 
and, a north-west wind happening to blow at the 
time, the smoke hung for days like a black pall 
over the city of Peking. 

Though the war party at Jehol were still breathing 



SIGNATURE OF TREATY 305 

out fire and slaughter against the foreigners, Prince 
Kung was quietly negotiating the terms of the treaty. 
By an act of poetical justice the Prince of I's house 
was appropriated as the temporary residence of Lord 
Elgin and Baron Gros, and on the 24th of October, 
when a complete agreement had been arrived at, these 
Ministers met Prince Kung at the Hall of Ceremonies, 
and there concluded the treaty which has guided the 
relation between China and the Western nations to 
the present day. With some reluctance the Emperor 
issued an edict authorising the publication of the 
treaty throughout the Empire, and after this final 
act the Ministers, accompanied by the troops, left 
Peking. 

A time of great doubt and uncertainty followed on 
the conclusion of peace. It is in most cases difficult 
to determine the true motives of Chinese statesmen, 
but in the present instance there was no trace of 
ambiguity in the attitude of the anti-foreign party at 
Jehol. To Prince Kung, who had seen the Allied 
armies, who had recognised their strength, and who 
had felt their power, the idea of bringing about another 
war appeared downright madness. In this firm belief 
he used his utmost endeavours to induce the Emperor 
to move his Court to Peking, where he felt that he 
might have some chance of influencing the counsels 
of his brother. This proposal was vehemently and 
successfully resisted by the Prince of I, Shu Shun, 
and other evil counsellors who surrounded the inert 
and feeble " Son of Heaven." Throughout all these 
negotiations Prince Kung's hopes rested, and as it 
was ultimately proved, with good reason, on the 

21 



306 THE WAR OF 1860 

Empress, who was an able woman, and who had con- 
siderable influence over her husband. Hsienfeng 
himself was little more than a lay figure, and not 
unfrequently the members of his council flagrantly 
disobeyed with impunity his express commands. 
During the winter of 1 860-61 Court intrigues, and 
more or less open contests, were continually in pro- 
gress, and the only hope of continued peace rested on 
the wished-for triumph of Prince Kung over his 
truculent opponents. Associated with Prince Kung 
were Grand Secretary Wenhsiang and Hang-ki, who 
were all honestly desirous, in the circumstances, of 
maintaining peace. They probably had as little 
affection for foreigners as either the Prince of I or 
Shu Shun, and indeed in a moment of confidence 
Hang-ki said to Parkes, while he was yet in his 
bonds, " Do not mistake ; it is not for the sake of 
yourselves individually that I advocate your release ; 
far from it ; for, if I thought it would benefit our 
position, I would advocate your death ; but it is 
because I know your people. I am better acquainted 
with their powers of destruction than the other Com- 
missioners are. I know they will carry out their 
threat and destroy Peking if harm falls on you two ; 
this will bring misery on the people and destruction 
upon us." This outspoken utterance is faithfully 
descriptive of the attitude of ninety-nine out of every 
hundred mandarins who are at the present date said 
to be amicably disposed towards foreigners. 

But though peace with the foreigners was restored, 
VcB victis was the cry in the distracted Imperial 
Council, and the ratification of the treaties had no 



SANKOLINSIN DEGRADED 307 

sooner been exchanged than the following edict 
appeared in the Peking Gazette : " Let Sankolinsin 
be deprived of his nobility ; let Juilin [who it will be 
remembered commanded in the neighbourhood of 
Tungchow] be immediately deprived of his office, as 
a warning. Respect this." This was the beginning 
of the fall of Sankolinsin, and though he was subse- 
quently employed against the Nienfei rebels he re- 
mained under a cloud of official displeasure, and was 
eventually treacherously murdered by some of his own 
followers. In no country in the world is success re- 
garded so emphatically as a sign of merit as in China, 
and the reverse — viz., that failure is synonymous with 
incompetence, holds good. Unsuccessful generals in 
the Flowery Land find their way, as a rule, to the 
execution ground, and it is probable that Sankolin- 
sin's relationship with the Emperor alone saved his 
life on this occasion. 

During the winter of 1860-61 the Emperor re- 
mained at Jehol much against the advice of Prince 
Kung and his colleagues, who felt, and rightly felt, 
that his absence from the capital at this crisis was a 
virtual abdication of his Imperial functions. But to 
all admonition from this quarter he turned a deaf ear, 
and at the inspiration of his entourage listened greedily 
to the false accounts of the disorders, which were said 
by his interested advisers to prevail in the capital. 
As the summer drew on his health began to fail. It 
was said that he caught a succession of bad chills, 
and it is possible that this may have been the case, 
for though quite a young man his strength was 
seriously undermined by the constant debaucheries and 



308 THE WAR OF 1 86o 

acts of self-indulgence which made up his daily life. 
At this time a comet appeared in the skies, an occur- 
rence which is universally regarded in China an evil 
omen. The alarm occasioned by this sign in the 
heavens was excessive and prepared the people for 
the reports which spread at the beginning of August 
as to the alarming state of the Emperor's health. So 
serious was the condition of things that Prince Kung 
determined to go to Jehol, as he rightly considered 
that his only chance of retaining power lay in his 
being able to combine with the Empress against the 
intrigues of the Prince of I and others, who still held 
the Emperor's confidence. The political atmosphere 
at Jehol was not a congenial one to the Prince, and 
though he succeeded in forming a most useful alliance 
with the Empress, which was destined to lead to great 
consequences, he made no impression whatever on the 
Emperor, who was evidently very near death. Prince 
Kung had only just returned to Peking when the 
well-known literary precursor of the end appeared in 
the shape of the usual edict appointing a successor to 
the throne. This document was as follows : " Let 
Tsai Ch'un, the eldest son of the Emperor, be Crown 
Prince. Our eldest son Tsai Ch'un being now con- 
stituted Crown Prince, let Ts'ai Yuan, Prince of I ; 
Twan Hwa, Prince of Ching ; Ching Shou ; Shu 
Shun ; Mu Yin ; Kwan Yiian ; Tu Han ; Tsiang 
Yuying, with all their might aid him as Counsellors 
in all things pertaining to the administration of the 
Government." On the 22nd of August the Emperor 
died, and the Crown Prince was proclaimed Emperor 
under the style of Chihsiang. As the new Emperor 



JEHOL AND PEKING 309 

was but four years old the conduct of affairs passed, 
even more definitely than had been the case before, 
into the hands of the anti-foreign Council appointed 
as above. 

For a time things went smoothly ; the foreign 
relations were conducted by Prince Kung, Prince 
Ch'un, the father of the present Emperor, Grand 
Secretary Wenhsiang, and the veteran Kweiliang, 
while the general administration of the Empire was 
conducted from Jehol. This was plainly a state 
of things which could not continue to exist, and 
towards the end of October it was announced that 
the youthful " Son of Heaven " would return at once 
to Peking followed by the funeral cortege of his 
father. This decision brought matters to a crisis, 
and forced on a trial of strength between the two 
parties in the State. The ladies of the harem were 
the first to arrive at Peking. These were shortly 
followed by the boy Emperor, who entered his 
capital seated on his mother's knee, and attended 
by the Council of State, with the exception of Shu 
Shun whose duty it was to escort the remains of 
the late Emperor. Prince Kung's visit to Jehol 
was now to bear fruit, and the Peking world was 
thrown into a state of wild excitement by the 
appearance of an edict purporting by a pious 
fiction to proceed from the hand of the Emperor 
dismissing the Jehol courtiers from their offices, and 
ordering that the Princes of I and Ching with Shu 
Shun, should be put on their trial for having deceived 
their Imperial master, and for having grossly mis- 
managed the affairs of State. At the same time a 



3IO THE WAR OF 1860 

second decree appeared appointing the two Dowager 
Empresses, the wife of Hsienfeng and the mother of 
the Emperor, Regents of the Empire. With these 
two State papers in his hand. Prince Kung presented 
himself before the assembled council, and having 
read in their astonished ears the sentence of their 
degradation, he demanded to know whether they 
were prepared to submit to the Imperial commands. 
Kung had not been unmindful of the possibility of 
opposition, and he had strengthened his position by 
massing large bodies of troops under General Sheng 
Pao, on whom he could implicitly rely, in the 
neighbourhood of the capital. His enemies, re- 
cognising their impotence, at once declared their 
submission to the decrees, and left the council 
chamber in a body, but not before the Princes of 
I and Ching had been taken into custody. So long, 
however, as Shu Shun was at liberty Kung's triumph 
was incomplete, and Prince Ch'un was therefore sent 
with a body of Tartar cavalry to arrest the offender 
on his way from Jehol in command of the funeral 
procession. It so chanced that the Prince came upon 
his prey late at night at one of the Imperial travelling 
palaces on the road. Without the slightest com- 
punction he broke in upon the peaceful slumbers of 
Shu Shun, when it was proved to demonstration that 
he had aggravated his offences by bringing the ladies 
of his harem in his company, while on the sacred and 
solemn duty of escorting the remains of his late 
Imperial master to their last resting-place. With 
stolid indifference Shu Shun yielded to force majeuVy 
and submitted to enter Peking as a prisoner. No 



EXECUTION OF CONSPIRATORS 3II 

time was lost in putting the prisoners on their trial. 
In Eastern countries only one sentence is possible in 
such a case, and all three offenders were condemned 
to death. Shu Shun was declared worthy of Lingeh'ihy 
or the Lingering Process, while the two Princes were 
sentenced to be beheaded. The severity of these 
verdicts was mercifully mitigated by the Dowager 
Empresses, who sent Shu Shun to decapitation on 
the execution ground, and as an act of grace allowed 
the two Princes to perform the happy despatch by 
strangling themselves in prison. Finally to dis- 
associate the young Emperor once and for all from 
any association with his father's evil advisers, the 
title of Chihsiang, which had been chosen for his 
reign by the late council, was changed to that of 
T'ungchih. 




X 



THE rAIPlNG REBELLION 

Before the outbreak of the foreign war the 
T'aip'ing Rebellion, as we have seen, had been 
gradually dying out from want of vigour and 
initiative, and the two cities of Nanking and An- 
king were the only two places of importance re- 
maining in the occupation of the rebels. But when 
it became necessary for the Government to defend 
the capital against the Allies, every available soldier 
was sent northward, and the local authorities were 
left to cope as best they might with the followers 
of the " Heavenly King." But though the rebels 
were thus relieved of a great strain, they would 
probably have been unable to avert an immediate 
collapse had it not been for the Chung Wang, or 
Faithful Prince, who throughout his whole career 
showed a staunch loyalty to the cause, and a 
marked capacity for military tactics. The Tien 
Wang was lost in a slough of debauchery within 
his palace at Nanking, and with the exception of 
Chung Wang none of the rebel leaders showed 
any considerable power of organisation or any love 



THE FAITHFUL PRINCE 313 

of fighting. At the time of which we speak (1859) 
Nanking was closely invested by the troops under 
Tseng Kwofan, and it is beyond question that the 
city would before long have fallen into the hands 
of the Imperialists if Chung Wang had not come 
forward to its relief. He instinctively saw that, 
beleaguered as they were, it had become merely a 
question of time how long the provisions in the 
city would hold out, and he recognised that the 
only remedy left to the garrison was to raise the 
siege by an attack from outside. With the sanction 
of the " Heavenly King " he undertook this duty, 
and having made his way through the Imperial 
lines succeeded in collecting a rebel force at Wuhu. 
With these recruits he crossed the Yangtsze to the 
north bank, and laid siege to, and captured, the 
important city of Hochow in Anhui. This was the 
beginning of a series of successes. City after city 
fell into his hands, until the whole country on the 
north side of the river opposite Nanking passed 
into the possession of the rebels. Chung Wang's 
main effort, however, was directed to cutting off the 
base of supplies from which the Imperial army 
before Nanking drew its resources, and to harrying 
its supports. With these objects in view he crossed 
the river, and after a rapid march, during which he 
captured several positions, he suddenly appeared 
before the celebrated city of Hangchow. With 
comparative ease he made himself master of this 
important town, and was on the point of following 
up his successes by delivering an attack on Soo- 
chow when he received a positive command from 



314 THE t'aIP'ING rebellion 

the " Heavenly King " to march at once to the 
rehef of the closely beleaguered garrison of Nan- 
king. Without a moment's delay he started on his 
mission, and on arrival at the scene of action at once 
gave battle to the besieging force. Possessed with 
unbounded energy himself he succeeded on this, 
as on many other occasions, in imparting the same 
invaluable quality to his troops. With irresistible 
vigour they charged on the Imperial lines. The 
battle was hotly contested, and ended in a com- 
plete victory to the rebels, who dissipated the 
Imperial army and slew five thousand of its best 
troops. 

Having achieved this signal success the Faithful 
Prince returned with the intention of completing 
his sinister designs against Soochow. But his way 
was not straight before him, for at some distance 
to the north of the doomed city was stationed an 
opposing army led by Tseng's chief and ablest 
lieutenant, Chang Kwoliang. Here again the Im- 
perialists were completely defeated with a loss of 
ten thousand men, but an even greater misfortune 
to their cause was the death of their able commander, 
who by some strange misadventure was drowned in 
the Grand Canal during the progress of the fighting. 
After another stubborn engagement with the re- 
mainder of the Imperial forces, led by Chang's 
brother, Chung Wang entered the city of Wusieh 
in triumph. It now seemed as though a vital, and, 
from their point of view, a most encouraging turn 
had been given to the affairs of the rebels. So 
fully was this realised that the Imperialist General 



IMPERIALIST DISASTERS 315 

Ho, who had commanded at Wusieh, despairing of 
his master's cause, committed suicide. 

The ImperiaHsts were now in desperate straits, 
while in the north the dynasty was suffering a rude 
shock (May, i860) at the immediate prospect of an 
invasion by the AlHed armies. We have seen how 
Yeh, at Canton, while flouting the English one day, 
was ready to beseech their help against the local 
rebels on the next, and guided by the same instinct 
for self-preservation Ho, the Viceroy of the two 
Kiang Provinces, even went the length of begging 
for the help of some of the foreign troops, who were 
collecting at Shanghai preparatory to the campaign 
in the north, for the suppression of the advancing 
T'aip'ings. This strange request was of course 
refused, but at the same time the Viceroy was 
informed that the Allies would protect the city and 
settlement of Shanghai from any assault that the 
rebels might make upon them. Meanwhile the 
Faithful Prince pursued his victorious career. In 
rapid succession the cities of Soochow, Quinsan, 
Tsingpu, and Taitsan yielded to his arms, and 
thus it may be said that the whole of the rich 
peninsula formed by the river Yangtsze and the 
Bay of Hangchow had passed into the hands of the 
rebels. The news of these fresh disasters had no 
sooner reached Peking, than the Viceroy Ho received 
orders to present himself at Peking for judgment. 
It is difficult to know what more he could have 
done with the materials at his disposal. But his 
crime was failure to preserve the provinces entrusted 
to him, and after a short shrift he was executed. 



3l6 THE 'fAIP'iNG REBELLION 

The approach of the rebel legions to the neigh- 
bourhood of Shanghai gave rise to considerable 
consternation in the minds of native merchants, 
who, cut off as they now were from the districts 
which supplied them with silks, satins, and teas, 
felt that their occupations might be considered to be 
gone, unless they could by some means help the 
Government in its present and pressing difficulties. 
Like the late Viceroy they turned to Europeans 
for help, and established a Patriotic Association 
which they supported with large sums for the 
protection of their country's weal. At Li Hung- 
chang's instigation they engaged the services of two 
Americans named Ward and Burgevine, who were 
instructed to collect as many stray Europeans as 
might be found on the spot available and willing 
to take up arms in the Emperor's cause. It was 
arranged between these adventurers and the As- 
sociation that they should under any circumstances 
receive a certain fixed rate of pay, and that their 
stipends should be liberally supplemented by rewards 
in return for every city or stronghold they might 
take. To the south-west of Shanghai, at a distance 
of about twenty miles, stood the rebel stronghold 
of Sungkiang Fu. The proximity of this place and 
its strategic importance induced the Association to 
desire that it should be the first point of attack. 
To this Ward agreed, and at the head of about three 
hundred Europeans and natives of Manila, he led 
the assault, Burgevine acting as Quartermaster to 
the expedition. The first onslaught was repulsed 
with considerable loss, and Ward returned dis- 



WAJ^DS FORCE 317 

comfiled to Shanghai to supply the deficiencies in 
his ranks. Having thus succeeded in gaining fresh 
recruits, he renewed the attack, and this time with 
success. The amount of plunder secured in this 
venture was very considerable, and the liberal 
douceurs which were distributed among the troops 
gained increased popularity for the force. In a sea- 
port like Shanghai there is always a floating popula- 
tion of ne'er-do-weels, who are ready for " treasons, 
stratagems, and spoils," and Ward found little 
difficulty in filling the gaps made in his ranks 
by wounds and death. The next object of attack 
was Tsingpu, a strong city whose fortifications had 
been designed and strengthened under the direction 
and guidance of an Englishman named Savage, who 
like many others had joined the rebel ranks. 

As was the case before Sungkiang, Ward's first 
assault upon Tsingpu was unsuccessful, and he was at 
the same time still further discomfited by an attack 
on his rear delivered by the ever-alert Chung Wang, 
who not only utterly routed his force, but captured 
his artillery and stores. At the close of the Peking 
campaign the British authorities had leisure and 
opportunity to consider the position of affairs in the 
rebel districts, more especially in the neighbourhood 
of Shanghai. That place had of late years become 
such an important emporium of trade that it was 
considered advisable to open negotiations with a view 
of placing it beyond the possibility of warlike dis- 
turbance. Admiral Hope therefore steamed up the 
river to Nanking, and in an interview with the 
" Heavenly King " pointed out the advisability, in his 



3i8 THE t'aip'ing rebellion 

interest as well as in that of the British, of placing 
the port beyond the sphere of hostile action. The 
" Heavenly King " graciously accepted this view and 
gave his word that no attack should be made on 
Shanghai for at least one twelvemonth. The exac- 
tion of this promise was the more necessary and 
important as already the Faithful Prince had made 
one attack upon the city. He afterwards stated that 
he had been invited to this venture by the French, 
but however that may have been, he found on ap- 
proaching the walls that they were defended by a 
garrison of English and French, before whose wither- 
ing fire his men fled away dismayed. After some 
desultory fighting in the neighbourhood of his defeat 
the Faithful Prince returned to Soochow, whence he 
was hastily summoned to Nanking to relieve that 
city, which was being attacked for the sixth time by 
the Imperialists. It is impossible to follow the 
various manoeuvres, assaults, and sacks undertaken 
by that most energetic of commanders, the Faithful 
Prince. These actions lose much of their interest 
when we find that the T'aip'ing force was merely 
destructive. The general proceedings on capturing a 
city were to slaughter the inhabitants, and to loot 
their homes, but in no sense to set up anything 
approaching to a stable administration. On the 
other hand the leisurely movements of the Imperial- 
ists incline one to lose sympathy with men who, 
while engaged in a life-and-death struggle with the 
promoters of disorder, were so strangely wanting in 
energy and resource. But notwithstanding this 
apparent apathy it was becoming plain to careful 



THE TURN OF THE TIDE 3I9 

observers that the ImperiaHsts were gradually closing 
round the rebels. The capture of Nanking by Tseng 
Kwofan was a serious blow to their cause, and after 
that catastrophe the action shortly to be taken at 
Shanghai placed the rebels between a double fire. 

So long, however, as the Faithful Prince was in 
command of the rebel armies successes were always 
possible, and his rapid captures of Ningpo and 
Hangchow for a time revived the falling hopes of 
the T'aip'ings. The year during which the "Heavenly 
King " had promised that no attack should be made 
on Shanghai, had now expired, and Chung Wang, 
flushed by his temporary successes in the south, 
determined once more to lay siege to that city. In 
January, 1862, his troops arrived in the immediate 
vicinity of the town and settlement. Not wishing to 
repeat their former experience by making an actual 
attack on the walls, the rebels entrenched themselves 
in the neighbourhood, and devoted their leisure time 
to plundering the country side. In addition to the 
promise mentioned above, the " Heavenly King " had 
undertaken that his troops should not, under any 
circumstances, approach within a radius of thirty 
miles of the city. This undertaking was now plainly 
broken, and the Allied commanders, fresh from the 
victories achieved over the Imperialists at Peking, 
now undertook a campaign against the enemies of 
their former foes. Without much difficulty the foreign 
troops, although numerically infinitely inferior, drove 
back the invaders beyond the agreed-upon line, and 
recovered for the Emperor the town and cities within 
that district. Meanwhile Ward's force, which had 



320 THE TAIPING REBELLION 

adopted the grandiloquent title of the " Ever Vic- 
torious Army," was rapidly becoming an important 
factor in the situation. It numbered five thousand 
men and, by a constant and careful system of drill, 
was assuming somewhat the position of a regular 
force. It ably supported General Staveley in his 
campaign around Shanghai, and subsequently gained 
numerous victories single-handed over the rebels. 
But the necessity which compelled Ward, as it subse- 
quently did Gordon, to place himself at the head of 
his men if he wished them to fight, at last proved 
fatal to him, and in an attack on the city of Tzuki 
he received a wound which proved fatal. He was a 
brave man, and though quite uneducated, had learnt 
enough of military tactics to enable him to hold his 
own against the rebel leaders. It is illustrative of 
the amount of plunder obtainable under the Imperial 
banner, that although the deceased commander had 
only held the post for two years he left behind him a 
fortune of fifteen thousand pounds. 

The man who was chosen to succeed him was his 
subordinate Burgevine, who was possessed of a more 
high-flying ambition than his predecessor, and who 
was loftily determined that if he commanded at all 
he would have his own way in everything. Li Hung- 
chang, who had meanwhile become Governor of the 
province, was not a man to brook any such preten- 
sions, and it was not long before a violent disagree- 
ment occurred between these two chiefs. The Pa- 
triotic Association, who were quite as distrustful of 
Burgevine as was the Governor, entirely took his 
view of the position, and as they held the purse strings 



QUARREL BETWEEN LI AND BURGEVINE 32 1 

they were a power which it was all important to con- 
sider. They, together with Li, had been in the habit 
of providing thirty thousand pounds per month for 
the support of the force, and they chose to make 
their authority felt by reducing this sum as soon as 
Burgevine came into power. The general was not 
likely to submit to such action, and he, thereupon, 
went to Shanghai with his body-guard, and after a 
personal altercation with the banker who represented 
the Association, in which even blows were struck, he 
impounded a considerable sum of money which he 
found on the premises, and carried it off to the camp. 
This made a breach which it was plainly impossible 
to bridge over, and Li dismissed Burgevine from his 
command. But it is ill swapping horses when in the 
midst of a stream, and the dismissal of Burgevine 
was followed by almost a mutiny amongst the troops, 
and by the appointment of a Captain Holland, under 
whose command only one expedition, and that an 
eminently unsuccessful one against T'aits'ang, was 
undertaken. 

But a new turn was to be given to events by the 
appointment of Major Gordon to the command of 
the Ever Victorious Army vice Captain Holland. 
Gordon was a man who was known by his fellows as 
an officer of marked ability, great strength of cha- 
racter, and of unflinching courage. At the time of 
which we speak, he was engaged in making a survey 
of the country round Shanghai, a useful work which 
in other circumstances he would have been allowed 
to complete. But his help was immediately called 
for, and he no sooner received the appointment of 

22 



322 THE 'fAIP'iNG REBELLION 

commander to the Force, than he exchanged the 
theodolite for the sword, and marched out of Sung- 
kiang to meet the enemy. His first objective was a 
place called Fushan, which fell an easy prey into 
his hands. The fall of this place entailed the eva- 
cuation by the rebels of Changshu, a neighbouring 
stronghold, and thus Gordon's first engagement 
secured a double victory. Li Hungchang was de- 
lighted with the success thus easily won, and he 
reported to the throne in glowing terms on Gordon's 
generalship. In response to this effusion he received 
a Rescript which contained the following reference to 
the achievement : " Gordon, on succeeding to the 
command of the Ever Victorious Force, having 
displayed both valour and intelligence, and having 
now, with repeated energy, captured Fushan, we 
ordain that he at once receive rank and office as a 
Chinese Tsungping (General), and that we at the 
same time command Li to communicate to him the 
expressions of our approval. Let Gordon be further 
enjoined to use stringent efforts to maintain disci- 
pline in the Ever Victorious Force, which has fallen 
into a state of disorganisation, and thus to guard 
against the recurrence of former evils. Respect this." 
Next to Nanking the most important place in the 
possession of the rebels was Soochow, and it was 
now Li's main object to recover this city. As a 
preliminary step, however, it was necessary to capture 
the city of Kunshan (Quinsan) before advancing to 
the walls of the great stronghold, and at Li's insti- 
gation Gordon marched to undertake this initial 
venture. The successes which he had already gained, 



324 THE TAIPING REBELLION 

and the confidence which he had inspired, gave 
courage to his men ; and they marched wilHngly to 
the attack, being not altogether unmindful, also, of 
the spoils which a successful assault would give 
them an opportunity of reaping. While yet, however, 
on the way thither Gordon received a pressing 
message from Li beseeching him to march on the 
city of T'aits'ang to avenge the defeat which his troops 
had suffered at that place. Li had been under the 
impression that the rebels were prepared to negotiate 
for the surrender of the town, and he was justified in 
his belief by the results of several interviews which 
his lieutenants had had with the rebel commanders. 
But in Chinese warfare it is never safe to trust in 
your adversary's professions, and when the rebels 
opened the gates and admitted fifteen hundred 
Imperialists within the walls, it was only that they 
might the more easily cut them down to the last 
man. 

The city was so strongly fortified that Gordon's 
first attack proved unsuccessful. A second assault, 
directed by more matured counsels, however, ended 
in a complete victory, and though Gordon had good 
reason for congratulating himself on the capture, his 
rejoicings were unhappily marred by one of those 
inhuman acts of cruelty which are inseparable from 
Oriental warfare. "Among the prisoners taken at 
T'aits'ang were seven notorious rebel chiefs, who 
were handed over by Gordon to the custody of the 
Chinese General. It is not clear whether or not this 
officer communicated with Li on the fate of these 
captives, but it is clear that the inhuman punishment 



THE EVER VICTORIOUS ARMY 325 

inflicted on them met with his approval. Oriental 
ideas on the subject of punishment differ so widely 
from our own, that it is impossible to judge them 
by the same rules. Following a practice not at all 
uncommon, the Chinese general ordered the men to 
be fastened to crosses, to have arrows thrust through 
their flesh, to have strips of skin cut oft from various 
parts of their bodies, and in this state to be exposed 
till sundown, and then beheaded." 

Having avenged the defeat of Li's troops, Gordon 
was free to order an advance upon Kunshan. But 
he had forgotten that his men were mostly free- 
booters and only partly soldiers, and that after the 
capture of a city it was customary for them to carry 
their spoils to headquarters, 2>., Sungkiang. The 
order, therefore, for an immediate advance aroused 
anger among the troops, and produced open mutiny 
among some of the regiments. To give in to these 
predatory habits would have been fatal to the effi- 
ciency of the corps, and Gordon, therefore, marched 
with those who fell into the ranks and warned the 
remainder that any man who was not in his place by 
the time the force had performed half its march, 
would be struck off the rolls. The result of this 
threat was most salutary. The mutineers submitted 
at once, and marched with their comrades to the 
attack. A General Ch'eng, in command of a Chinese 
force, had been appointed to act in concert with the 
Ever Victorious Army in the siege of Kunshan. 
This redoubtable officer knew as much about mili- 
tary tactics as most Chinese generals, and, after much 
reconnoitring he had come to the conclusion that 



326 THE t'aIPING rebellion 

the assault should be made on the side of the eastern 
gate. Gordon's knowledge of Chinese commanders 
prepared him for the discovery that his colleague 
had selected the strongest part of the defences for 
the attack, and after a careful survey he was led to 
the conclusion that the weakest point was on the 
western side of the city. In front of this part of the 
walls were a number of stockades which were taken, 
not without some fighting, but with the result that 
the garrison of Kunshan, losing heart at the defeat 
of their comrades, evacuated the city and retreated 
along the raised causeway which connects Kunshan 
with Soochow. The exposed position of this road- 
way left the fugitives an easy prey to the guns of 
Gordon's artillery, and of the steamer Hyson, which 
enfiladed the causeway from the waters of the neigh- 
bouring canal. It is said that during the day 
between three and four thousand of the rebels 
were killed, while Gordon's death roll amounted 
only to two who were killed in action and five 
who were drowned. Thus the key of Soochow was 
captured. 

For several reasons, partly strategic and partly 
disciplinary, Gordon determined to make Kunshan 
the headquarters of the force. This move was bitterly 
resented by the rank and file, who, under the lax 
system of Ward and Burgevine, had been allowed 
a latitude which had destroyed in them the habit 
of implicit obedience. So strong was this want of 
discipline that they broke out into open mutiny at 
this supposed wrong. Gordon at once grappled 
with the difficulty. He readily divined that the 



A MUTINY IN THE RANKS 32/ 

non-commissioned officers were the centres of the 
dissatisfaction, and he took his measures accordingly. 
He announced to these sedition-mongers that unless 
within one hour the men fell in, every fifth man 
among them would be shot, and by way of pointing 
the moral of his threat, he ordered out the ringleader 
of the whole movement to instant execution. The 
sight of his exemplary punishment brought reason 
to the counsels of his former comrades, and within 
the appointed time the men gave in their loyal 
adhesion to their leader. 

This was only one of the difficulties which Gordon 
had to encounter at this time. His colleague, 
General Ch'eng, had never forgiven the neglect of 
his advice which had led to the capture of Kunshan, 
and, on the excuse of a mistake, but really by malice 
prepense, he directed on one occasion the fire of his 
guns against a regiment of the Ever Victorious Army. 
Money difficulties with Li further added to his 
anxieties. The system of looting which had been 
encouraged by Ward and Burgevine was repugnant 
to Gordon's ideas of soldiering, and he proposed to 
Li that after the capture of each town a gratuity 
should be distributed amongst the men in place 
of the spoils which used to be their portion. Li 
objected to this plan as being less economical than 
allowing the troops to gather their own rewards, and, 
though agreeing with the proposal so far as Kunshan 
was concerned, gave notice to Gordon that such 
irregular payments were "very inconvenient." These 
and other money difficulties so strained the relations 
between Gordon and Li, that Gordon determined to 



328 THE T'AIP'iNG REBELLION 

resign his position, and he announced his intention in 
the following letter to the Governor : — 

"Your Excellency, — In consequence of the 
monthly difficulties I experience in getting the 
payment of the force made, and the non-payment 
of legitimate bills for boat hire and munitions of 
war from Her Britannic Majesty's Government, who 
have done so much for the Imperial Chinese authori- 
ties, I have determined on throwing up the command 
of this force, as my retention of office in these cir- 
cumstances is derogatory to my position as a British 
officer, who cannot be a suppliant for what Your 
Excellency knows to be necessities, and which you 
should be only too happy to give." 

Having written this despatch, Gordon left Kun- 
shan for Shanghai, and on arriving at that port was 
met with the news that Burgevine, who had been 
for some time at Shanghai, had joined the rebels, 
and had gone to Soochow to assist in the defence 
of that city. This deed of infamy completely 
changed, in Gordon's opinion, the aspect of affairs, 
for not only was Burgevine's help likely to strengthen 
the rebels' position at Soochow, but, as Gordon was 
well aware, a number of officers and men of the 
Ever Victorious Army had a strong affection for 
their late commander. " In these circumstances 
loyalty to the cause he had adopted made Gordon 
forget for the moment Li's parsimony and Ch'eng's 
treachery, and without the loss of an hour he turned 
his horse's head and rode back to Kunshan." 



DISAFFECTION AT SOOCHOW $29 

For some days Gordon remained at Kunshan, ^ 
waiting to see what developments would arise from 
the presence of Burgevine in the rebel ranks. As 
nothing, however, occurred, he again took the field, 
and after some severe fighting captured an important 
outwork before Soochow. The turn which things 
had taken since Gordon had held command, and the 
capture of so many cities and fortified places had 
a depressing effect upon the T'aip'ings, and Gordon 
quickly learnt that within the walls of Soochow there 
was a strongly-supported movement in favour of 
making terms with the Imperialists. Several of 
these faint-hearted leaders opened negotiations per- 
sonally with Gordon, and at several of the meetings 
which took place Burgevine was present. Dis- 
appointed with the want of spirit which he found 
to exist in the rebel camp, this versatile traitor 
proposed to come over to the Imperialists, on con- 
dition that he and his men should be declared free 
from any penalty for the part they had taken in 
supporting the rebel cause. While preparing for 
this tergiversation he had the folly to propose to 
Gordon, of all men in the world, that they should 
together raise a force and march on Peking, over- 
throw the dynasty, and on its ruins establish an 
empire for themselves. One can understand the 
difficulty which Gordon had to refrain from express- 
ing his contempt and disgust at the folly and crime 
of such a proposition. Meanwhile negotiations went 
on, and matters were hastened by a violent incident 
which occurred within the city walls. The garrison 
was commanded by Mu Wang, one of the few 



330 THE t'aip'ing rebellion 

honourable men in the rebel ranks, and one who 
had not joined the other chieftains in the negotia- 
tions with Gordon. He, however, was aware of what 
was going on, and invited the commanders to dinner 
to discuss the situation. Considerable heat was 
shown in the course of the proceedings, and in the 
midst of a vehement dispute one of the commanders 
drew a dagger and stabbed Mu Wang to the heart. 
The conspirators then agreed to give up one of the 
gates to Gordon's force. Li, who was cognisant of 
the course of events, moved to the neighbourhood 
of the city in order to grace with his presence the 
expected triumph. On the gate being surrendered, 
the commanders went out in a body to Li's quarters 
to complete their surrender. What exactly happened 
on their entering the presence of the Governor has 
never been clearly ascertained. Li subsequently 
accused them of having been violent in their 
behaviour, and exorbitant in their demands ; but, 
be that as it may, Li, in spite of his solemn 
promise that Gordon's agreement should be ob- 
served, and that the lives of the commanders 
should be spared, ordered them out to instant 
execution. The news of this inhuman treachery 
reached Gordon in Soochow, and he then for the 
first time during the campaign took a weapon in 
his hand. Arming himself with a rifle, he went in 
search of the treacherous Li, and would unquestion- 
ably have shot him, if the Governor, having received 
timely warning of his danger, had not taken to flight. 
Outside Li's late headquarters Gordon found the 
mangled remains of the men to whom he had 



Lfs YELLOW JACKET 33 1 

promised life, and the sight of their mutilated bodies 
added grief and anger to his mind. Only one course 
was, he felt, open to him in these circumstances, and 
he wrote to Li " an indignant letter, in which, while 
proclaiming the infamy of his conduct, he resigned 
the command of the force." 
V The capture of Soochow was a crushing blow to 
the T'aip'ings, and with a great flourish of trumpets 
Li announced the victory to his Imperial master, 
who, taking up his vermilion pencil, indicted an edict, 
in which he described how " the army, acting under 
orders from Li Hungchang, captured in succession 
the lines of rebel works outside the four gates of 
the city, and so struck terror into the enemy, that 
urgent offers of returning allegiance were made. . . . 
As a mark of his sincere approbation his majesty 
is pleased to confer upon him (Li) the honorary title 
of ' Guardian of the Heir- Apparent,' and to present 
him with a yellow jacket (which was temporarily 
taken from him at the close of the Japanese war). 
Gordon, especially appointed General in the army 
of Kiangsu, was in command of troops who assisted 
in these operations. His Majesty, in order to evince 
his approval of the profound skill and great zeal 
displayed by him, orders him to receive a military 
decoration of the first rank and a sum of 10,000 
taels." In obedience to this edict, Li sent messengers 
bearing the 10,000 taels to the still indignant Gordon, 
and probably never in the history of the Empire 
have Imperial envoys dona ferentes met with such 
a reception as was accorded to these men. Gordon 
had been in the habit of leading his men into the 



332 THE t'AIP^ING REBELLION 

thickest of the fight, carrying in his hand only a stick 
with which he directed their movements. On this 
occasion he seized the same weapon, and applying 
it vigorously to the backs of the astonished envoys, 
drove them from his presence, carrying with them 
the blood-stained money which had been sent for 
his acceptance. 

For two months Gordon remained inactive, but at 
the end of that period, after much negotiation, he 
was induced once again to take the field. Soochow 
having fallen, Gordon's prime object was to join 
hands with Tseng Kwofan, who was at this time 
closely besieging Nanking. With complete success 
he captured the two cities which stood between 
him and his objective, and was about to continue 
his march towards the " Southern Capital," when 
he received an urgent message from Li, begging 
him to join him before Changchow Fu. Li's appeal 
for help was the more pressing, as he had just lost 
the services of General Ch'eng, who, with all his 
faults and failings, and they were neither few nor 
inconsiderable, was one of the best generals of which 
the Imperialists could boast. In an attack on 
Kashing Fu he had received a wound when leading 
his men, which rapidly proved fatal. Gordon con- 
sequently hastened to the succour of his colleague, 
and after some stiff fighting captured the city. With 
the fall of this stronghold the province of Kiangsu 
was restored in its entirety to the Imperialists, and 
Hangchow having fallen to the prowess of Tso 
Chungt'ang, there remained to the rebels only the 
one city of Nanking. The defences of this citadel 



FALL OF NANKING 333 

were fast crumbling away. Tseng Kwofan had com- 
pletely surrounded it, and provisions and ammunition 
were falling short within the walls. By way of 
lightening the burden on the rebel commissariat the 
" Heavenly King " sent out the women and children, 
as being touches inutiles, to the Imperialist lines. To 
the credit of Tseng Kwofan it must be said that he 
treated these helpless refugees with all consideration. 
He provided for their wants, and sent them to a 
place of safety. This was the beginning of the end. 
A few days later a mine which had been laid by the 
besiegers was fired, and a wide breach was made in 
the city wall. Through this opening the Imperialists 
rushed in, and the fate of the city was at once 
decided. The " Heavenly King " poisoned himself 
with gold-leaf, and the Faithful Prince, who had 
defended the place with the greatest courage, carried 
off the youthful heir to the T'aip'ing throne, in the 
vain hope that he might be able to establish an 
empire in some other part of the country. With 
characteristic unselfishness he placed the boy on his 
own horse, and mounted himself on a less well- 
favoured animal. But the pursuit was too quick 
for them, and they were both captured. The boy 
was beheaded on the spot, and Chung Wang was 
allowed a week's respite for the strange purpose of 
thus having time to write his own memoir. So soon 
as he had finished the last line of this curious pro- 
duction he was carried out to the execution ground. 
The pages which he composed when about to die 
have since been printed, and are full of interesting 
matter, though, as might be imagined, strict historical 



334 ^^^ T^AIP'lNG REBELLION 

accuracy is not always to be found in them. It is 
impossible to deny to this man the credit of having 
fought bravely and well for the cause which he had 
adopted, and it is not too much to say that if all the 
other T'aip'ing leaders had been animated with the 
same spirit of devotion and energy as that by which 
he was actuated, the T'aip'ing cause might have had 
a very different issue. 

The Ever Victorious Army having now served its 
end, Li Hungchang, who had always been jealous 
of it, at once proposed its disbandment. Like all 
Chinamen, Li is a thorough opportunist. When 
difficulties present themselves he does his best to 
grapple with them, but when once they disappear he 
regards it as quite unnecessary to prepare defences 
against future evils, or to take to heart any lessons 
from defeat and failure. We have had abundant 
evidence of this spirit of late years. The wars of 
1858 and i860, the T'aip'ing Rebellion, the Russian 
scare, the French war, and the Japanese invasion, 
have all furnished examples of the inability of 
Chinamen to do more than struggle, and generally 
ineffectually, with immediate events. In this respect 
they are like children in whose eyes the present 
difficulty is the all-absorbing subject, and who do not 
understand the possibility that the crisis may occur 
again. One would have expected that after the 
experience of the T'aip'ing Rebellion and the very 
material aid given to the Imperial cause by Gordon's 
force, Li would have attempted to raise a corps 
which should be drilled and armed on the same lines. 
But the instant that Nanking had fallen he was only 



THE EVER VICTORIOUS ARMY DISBANDED 335 

too ready to pay off the Ever Victorious Army, 
and to rid himself of the hateful intermeddling of 
foreign officers in native concerns. Gordon had 
proposed that in order to maintain a disciplined 
force, a camp should be formed in the neighbourhood 
of Shanghai, where a native army could be drilled by 
European officers on the English model. But Li 
would have none of it, and was quite prepared to 
allow his province to revert to its original condition 
of corruption and inefficiency until such time as some 
new emergency might arise to call for fresh exertions. 
But the most signal example of this laissez-faire 
policy has been displayed since the Japanese war. 
Such a crushing defeat by a neighbouring, hitherto 
despised. State, would, one would have thought, have 
shamed the mandarins into taking measures to make 
another such disaster impossible. But they have 
done next to nothing to strengthen their position, 
and the little that has been effected has been entirely 
due to the pressure which has been brought to bear 
upon them by Russia and Germany. Another war 
would practically find them in as hopeless a condition 
as that in which they were in 1894, and the position 
is the more hopeless since they feel no shame at 
their defeat. Their national pride covers them as 
with a garment, and they affect to regard the 
invasion of Korea and Manchuria as burglarious 
attempts on the part of Japanese pirates to rob them, 
by a raid, of their rightful possessions. They are 
content to declare that such conduct is contrary to 
the rules of propriety, and with this soothing con- 
sideration they try to dismiss the subject from their 
minds. Shortly before the fall of Nanking some gun- 



336 THE t'aip'ing rebellion 

boats, which in the hour of their emergency the 
Government had ordered from England, arrived at 
Shanghai, commanded by Captain Sherard Osborn 
of the Royal Navy. As their active services were no 
longer required, Li set to work to destroy their 
efficiency. His emissaries attempted to bribe the 
sailors to come over to the native gunboats by offers 
of large increases of pay, and he proposed such 
impossible conditions on Sherard Osborn in the case 
of his fleet being employed, that that officer left the 
port and steamed to the Peiho to lay his case before 
the Central Government. But referring from Li 
Hungchang to the Tsungli Yamen was like asking 
Mr. Spenlow to decide a question in opposition to 
Mr. Jorkins. Prince Kung and his colleagues were 
in full sympathy with Li Hungchang in this matter, 
and having no immediate use for the gunboats, they 
were only too glad to have the excuse of Captain 
Osborn's demands for declining altogether to receive 
them. In the same spirit Li Hungchang, shortly 
before the outbreak of the Japanese war, got rid of 
Captain Lang, who had been for years in command 
of the northern fleet, and whose continued presence 
might have put a different complexion on the battle 
of the Yalu. This curious failure to understand the 
necessity of preparing for emergencies has brought 
disaster after disaster upon the country, and at the 
present moment there is no sign that the authorities 
are at all alive to the obligations which rest on them 
if they would preserve the existence of the Empire. 
Many regiments of their troops are still armed with 
bows and arrows ; immense stores of ammunition are 
absolutely useless, and their best weapons are obsolete. 



XII 

THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

Ll HUNGCHANG was called upon to meet, sooner 
than might have been expected, an emergency in 
which he had again to appeal to foreigners for help. 
The suppression of the T'aip'ing Rebellion had not 
altogether restored peace to the country. The storm 
was over, but the ground-swell still remained, and 
from the disturbing elements which had been evoked 
another movement, hostile to the Imperial Govern- 
ment, rose in arms. The rebels had been so long 
accustomed to live by plunder rather than by honest 
work, that when as T'aip'ings their occupation was 
gone, they combined together again to raise the 
standard of revolt in the provinces of Shantung and 
Honan. Under the title of Nienfei these restless 
marauders wandered over the country looting and 
murdering. With some success they captured open 
towns and villages, and so serious was at one time 
the aspect of affairs that Li, whose experiences at 
Kiangsu were considered to have peculiarly fitted 
him for the task, was appointed Commissioner to 
suppress the rising. 

23 337 



338 THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

On receiving his nomination Li at once enlisted 
the services of as many of his old European officers 
as still were to be found in Shanghai, and with these 
as the backbone of his force he took the field against 
the rebels. The province of Shantung, where the 
rebels were strongest, so far resembles in outline the 
province of Kiangsu that three sides of it, the north, 
east, and south, are washed by the ocean. It had 
been Li's aim in the previous campaign to drive the 
T'aip'ings into the promontory of Kiangsu, and now, 
imitating the same tactics, he attempted to urge the 
Neinfei against the seaboard in Shantung, and there 
to overwhelm them. He was so far successful that 
he succeeded in driving the enemy into the desired 
position. But he had forgotten that troops could be 
transported by sea as well as moved on land, and to 
his extreme mortification, after having built a wall 
across the neck of the promontory, he found that the 
rebels had taken ship, had outflanked his position, 
and were pursuing their predatory career in the 
districts in his rear. For this and other failures he 
was robbed of the Yellow Jacket which he had won 
against the T'aip'ings and was ordered back to his 
Viceroyalty — he had in the meantime become Vice- 
roy of the Liang Hu Provinces. By the skilful use 
of his Court influence, however, he retained his 
position, and by a fortunate series of victories, finally 
achieved the success which at first was denied him. 
At the conclusion of the campaign he was granted 
an Imperial audience, when he had the gratification 
of once more finding the Yellow Jacket placed upon 
his shoulders. 



MOHAMMEDANS IN YUNNAN 339 

By a merciful dispensation of Providence, so far as 
the Manchu Dynasty of China is concerned, the 
rebelHons which have disturbed the peace of the 
Empire during the present century have been 
guided by men who have proved themselves quite 
incapable of establishing a settled government in the 
districts over which they have established their 
power. While the Imperial forces were engaged in a 
death struggle with the T'aip'ings, a rebellion, which 
at one time seemed likely to assume very serious 
proportions, broke out in the province of Yunnan. 
That district has always contained a large Moham- 
medan population. Accounts differ as to whence 
these followers of the Prophet originally came. They 
themselves have a legend that during a rebellion 
which broke out in the eighth century, a mission was 
sent by the reigning Emperor to Bagdad asking the 
Khalif for succour against his revolting subjects. In 
answer to this appeal three thousand Turkish soldiers 
were lent to the hardly pressed " Son of Heaven." 
Having successfully accomplished their errand they 
were naturally inclined to return to their native 
lands, but were refused admission among their 
countrymen on the ground that they had been 
defiled by a residence among pork-eating infidels. 
They, therefore, made up their minds to settle in 
Yunnan, where some few remnants of these first 
immigrants remain at the present day. Some colour 
is given to this account by the fact that the people 
in their appearance more nearly resemble natives of 
Arabia than sons of Han. By the constant inter- 
marriage with the Chinese their features have become 



340 THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

to a great extent sinicised, though they can be still 
readily distinguished by their superior stature, greater 
physical strength, and more energetic physiognomies. 
But whatever may be the semblance of truth in this 
story, it is a well-known fact that in the early part of 
the fourteenth century the province of Yunnan was 
largely populated by Mohammedans, and we know 
from the records that a century earlier the faith 
of Islam was carried into China by Mussulman 
emigrants from Central Asia. 

Up to the middle of the present century these 
strangers and pilgrims seem to have lived at peace 
with their Confucianist and Buddhist neighbours. 
At times no doubt they felt the heavy hand of 
oppression, at the instance of narrow-minded officials, 
and in 185 1 so fierce a persecution arose that an 
urgent petition was presented to the Throne accusing 
the Emperor's officials of gross oppression and 
wrong, and praying that a just and honest man 
might be sent to rule in Yunnan. This memorial 
was unproductive of any results, but for a time 
nothing occurred to disturb the peace of the province. 
In 1855, however, a riot broke out at one of the 
copper mines for which Yunnan is famous. Un- 
fortunately the mandarin in command of the district 
combined cowardice with incompetency, and took to 
flight, leaving the rioters to fight out their difficulty. 
A general massacre is a very common Chinese 
remedy for suppressing a revolt, and the Yunnan 
officials deemed this a proper opportunity for 
applying the exterminating cure. The Viceroy, to 
his credit be it said, raised a protest against so 



A VICEREGAL SUICIDE 34I 

drastic a remedy, but finding himself unable to check 
his subordinates, committed suicide in order to 
emphasise his disapproval of their brutal proposal. 
Unfortunately this self-sacrifice was unavailing, and 
in spite of the Viceroyal incident a day was fixed for 
the slaughter. Although rumours had been rife that 
this wholesale murder was to be committed, the 
Mahommedans were, strangely enough, taken by 
surprise, and many fell victims to the relentless 
swords of the mandarins. But a remnant was left, 
and these men, driven desperate by the conduct of 
their oppressors, banded themselves together, vowing 
to oppose to the death the Imperial rule in Yunnan. 
Two leaders were at this time forced to the front by 
circumstances. One was a man named Ma, who 
exercised priestly functions, and who had accumu- 
lated religious sanctity by having made a pilgrimage 
to Mecca. After his visit to that sacred city he had 
travelled through Egypt and Turkey, and had 
returned to China with a high reputation for religious 
zeal and knowledge. The other chieftain was known 
as Tu. This man, who, as was afterwards seen, 
proved to be the staunchest commander of the two, 
took early possession of the important city of Talifu, 
and thsre organised some sort of local government. 
In choosing this city as his headquarters he showed 
a keen eye for military defence. Dr. Anderson in 
his " Mandalay to Momein," thus described this 
stronghold : " Although Talifu is a small town the 
population of which did not at that time (1857) 
exceed thirty-five thousand, the rich plain walled in 
by mountains, and with a lake teeming with fish. 



342 THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

stretching forty miles in length and ten in breadth, 
maintained a population estimated before the war at 
four hundred thousand ; . . . the mountains to the 
north and south close in upon the lake, and the plain 
and city are accessible only by two strongly fortified 
passes. . . . Thus Tali has been from the earliest 
times a strong city ; it was the capital of a kingdom 
at the invasion of Kublai Khan, and is still regarded 
by the Tibetans, who make pilgrimages to its 
vicinity, as the ancient home of their forefathers." 

Secure in the possession of this stronghold Tu 
declared himself independent of Ma, who was thus 
left to command such forces in the field as he was 
able to collect. At the head of his somewhat ragged 
regiments he attacked the city of Yunnan Fu, and 
was repulsed without much difficulty. In 1859, 
however, he reappeared before its walls at the head 
of fifty thousand fighting-men. This attack was 
seriously meant, and the Imperialist garrison was 
reduced to such a parlous state that they were on 
the point of surrendering, when to their infinite sur- 
prise and relief they received proposals from Ma of 
negotiations for peace, on the understanding that he 
and his men should be accepted as Imperialist 
recruits. This opportunity of escape from a dire and 
impending disaster was too convenient to be allowed 
to lapse, and the terms were not only promptly 
arranged between the leaders on the spot, but met 
with full and instant approval at Peking. Ma himself 
was promised high office in the State, and his kins- 
man of the same surname, and who enjoyed the 
personal name of Julung, was made a general in the 



MOHAMMEDAN DISAFFECTION 34$ 

Imperial army. When sides are so easily exchanged 
and prizes so easily won, the temptation to indulge 
in personal ambitions is more than most men, and 
especially Orientals, can resist, and on the occasion of 
Ma Julung taking the field against the rebel force, 
his lieutenant, whom he had left in command at 
Yunnan Fu, raised the standard of revolt, murdered 
the Viceroy, and took possession of the town in the 
Mohammedan interest. This treacherous move was 
short-lived. Ma hastened back to the city, effected 
an entrance through the walls, and after five days' 
hard fighting, restored all that was left of it to the 
Imperial sway. During this time Tu was consoli- 
dating his power at Tali Fu, and being a man of 
determination and vigour, whose authority it was 
essential to check, it was deemed best and safest by 
the Imperialists to attempt to subdue him by offers 
of preferment rather than by attacks on his fortress. 
The priestly Ma, being of a diplomatic turn, was 
deputed to open relations with him, and by display- 
ing the honours which had rewarded his own 
treachery to persuade him to follow his example. But 
the chieftain was made of sterner stuff than his inter- 
viewer, and treated with disdain his dastardly proposals. 
When so vast a province as Yunnan, covering as it 
does an area of 107,969 square miles, is in the throes 
of rebellion, it is impossible to suppose that the spirit 
of unrest should not spread to the neighbouring 
districts. In the adjoining province of Kweichow 
existed, and still exists, a large population of Miaotzu 
who have a distinct origin from the Chinese, and who 
are survivors of one of the original races which occu- 



344 ^^^ NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

pied the Empire before the advent of the Chinese. 
As the primitive invaders advanced into the country 
the Miaotzii, Hke the other aboriginal tribes, retreated 
to the mountain fastnesses in Kweichow, Kwangsi, 
and on the Tibetan frontier. In these places they 
have persistently held themselves aloof from their 
more powerful neighbours, and though ordinarily 
peaceful, have on repeated occasions been goaded by 
oppression into taking up arms against their tyrants. 
At the time of which we are speaking (1863) they, 
for some unexplained reason, broke out into revolt, 
and thus placed the Imperial forces in Yunnan 
between two fires. Another aspirant to leadership, 
named Liang, at the same time raised the standard 
of disaffection at a town called Linan Fu, and thus 
further added to the difficulties of the Imperialists, 
which were already sufficiently embarrassing. For 
some three or four years this most unsatisfactory 
condition of affairs remained practically unchanged. 
There was fighting here and there, but no distinct 
advantage was gained by either side. Later on an 
attack (1867), made by Ma on the defenders of Tali 
Fu, proved unsuccessful, and he in no way succeeded 
in preventing Tu from keeping open his communi- 
cations with Burma, from which convenient territory 
he was able to procure an unfailing supply of arms 
and ammunition for the support of his cause. But 
after all he was constrained to feel that though 
holding his own he was not making headway, and he 
could not but recognise that support from the outside 
was necessary to enable him to continue to maintain 
a successful struggle. He had entertained in his 



TREACHEROUS MURDERS 345 

dominions, and had been civilly treated by, the 
members of an English mission sent from Burma to 
report upon the trading facilities which might be 
hoped for from Yunnan. His thoughts, therefore, 
naturally turned towards England, and he despatched 
a nephew to London with directions to open relations 
with the English Government, in the hope that they 
might be induced to lend their countenance to his 
cause. It is needless to say that these overtures 
were declined. But this was not all. They indirectly 
had a most diastrous effect on the fortunes of the 
rebels, for the Chinese Government, alarmed at the 
mere possibility of foreign interference, determined 
to crush once and for all the Mohammedan move- 
ment. Meanwhile Tu had attempted to turn the 
scales on his enemies, and had besieged Yunnan Fu. 
The venture, however, proved unsuccessful, and he 
had again to betake himself for shelter to the stout 
walls of Tali Fu. While the Imperial authorities 
were, in that leisurely way which belongs to them, 
gathering themselves up for the fatal spring upon 
the Mohammedans, matters dragged on and were 
diversified only by petty engagements, and by the 
treacherous murder of some rebel chiefs who had 
surrendered themselves on the usual understanding 
that their lives would be spared. Like most acts of 
treacherous cruelty, this one was both unwise and 
uncalled for. It embittered the feeling on the part of 
the Mohammedans against the Imperialists, and dis- 
inclined men who were disposed to go over to the 
Emperor's generals to trust themselves to their tender 
mercies. 



^ 



346 THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

A large importation of Hunan soldiers, commanded 
by one of Tseng Kwofan's lieutenants, added greatly 
to the Imperial strength at this time, and a forced 
contribution of 70,000 taels per month, which was 
contributed by six of the other provinces, placed the 
provincial exchequer in a comparatively flourishing 
condition. With these auxiliary forces the Emperor's 
cause began to make way, and gradually the whole 
province was recovered with the exception of the one 
city. Tali Fu. With an irresistible weight of numbers 
the Imperialists closely besieged this doomed strong- 
hold, and it soon became evident that it was destined 
to fall into their hands. In so exhausted and starv- 
ing a condition did the garrison become at last that 
Tu opened negotiations for the surrender of the town. 
One wonders at the folly of men who could trust their 
lives in the hands of opponents who had in almost 
every case falsified their treaty oaths, and had 
slaughtered without mercy those to whom they had 
promised life. But so it was. Tu surrendered him- 
self knowingly to death, the Imperialists having 
refused to spare his life. But the other chieftains 
encouraged themselves to believe that in their cases 
the compact would be kept. On the day appointed 
for the delivery of the city, Tu was carried through 
the streets and out to the Imperial camp in a sedan- 
chair, accompanied with every insignia of Empire. 
With impatient desire General Ma received this 
equipage, which, when opened, however, revealed, to 
his disappointment, that he was possessed with but 
the corpse of the dreaded chief Another version of 
the surrender states that Tu, on presenting himself 



MASSACRES IN TALI FU 347 

before the Commander-in-chief, asked for a cup of 
cold water. This was given him, and he fell dead 
from the effects of a poison which the water had 
suddenly brought into action. Though robbed of his 
living victim. Ma decapitated the corpse, and sent the ^ 
head, preserved in honey, to grace the palace of his 
Imperial master. The usual events followed on the 
surrender of the city. The Mohammedan leaders 
were invited to a grand feast, and while yet they sat 
at meat, a body of soldiers who had been concealed 
in the room rushed out on them and cut them down 
to the last man. This villainy having been effected, 
a further outrage was committed. At a given signal 
the soldiers were let loose on the inhabitants of the 
city. The scenes that were there witnessed are not 
to be surpassed in horror. The troops slaughtered 
their helpless victims until fatigue made it impossible ^ 
for them to deal out further murders, and no fewer 
than thirty thousand men, women, and children 
perished in the massacre. 

For seventeen years the province had been deso- 
lated by the relentless wars of which it had been the 
scene, while to add to the horrors of the situation the 
plague had swept over whole districts, carrying havoc 
into the ranks of both the rebels and their opponents 
alike. Up to this day Yunnan has not recovered 
from these fearful visitations. Whole neighbourhoods 
are still untenanted and the lands uncultivated. 
Though rich in minerals, the soil is not on the whole 
productive, and as the mandarins hold with a jealous 
care a monopoly over the mines, there is little to 
attract immigrants into the province. That as a 



348 THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

mining district it has great possibilities there can be 
no doubt, and with the prospect of railway communi- 
cation with Burma, it may be that a great future lies 
before the present unhappy district. 

It is a curious coincidence that while there was no 
kind of connection or intercommunication between 
the Mohammedans of Yunnan and their co-religionists 
in North-western China, a wave of rebellion should 
have swept over the provinces of Shensi and Kansu 
at the same time that Ma and Tu were raising the 
standard of revolt in the south-west. At this time 
(1857) the T'aip'ing Rebellion was so fully occupying 
the attention of the Chinese Government, that they 
were unable to do more than hold in check the 
revolting followers of the Prophet, and it was not 
until five years afterwards that an act of treachery on 
the part of the Chinese fanned the smouldering ashes 
of discontent into a flame. The position now required 
more stringent measures than had hitherto been taken, 
and two Chinese Commissioners were despatched to 
restore order in the disturbed districts. In an ill- 
fated moment a plot was laid for the murder of these 
men, and while one escaped, the other suffered death 
at the hands of the assassins. The murderer, when 
taken, was done to death with the utmost refinement 
of cruelty, and a decree was issued by the young 
Emperor T'ungchih ordering a general massacre of 
all those who should persist in following the creed of 
Islam. With considerable and unwonted success the 
Emperor's forces suppressed the rebellion within the 
frontier of China proper. But beyond the great wall 
stretches a dreary waste as far as Aksu which is 



A MONGOLIAN CAMPAIGN 349 

dotted at distant and lonely intervals by cities held 
in the name of the "Son of Heaven." These garrisons 
were mostly Mohammedan, and, infected with the 
desire of throwing off the Chinese yoke, they broke 
out into a simultaneous revolt. In these wild districts 
there are always elements of disorder lying dormant 
but ready to rise into action at a moment's notice, 
and on all sides the pretenders to lost thrones and 
aspirants to chieftainships took up arms against the 
paramount power in the hope that in the prevailing 
disorder they might be able to satisfy their ambitions. 
By the surviving loyal garrisons T'ungchih's truculent 
order was, however, faithfully obeyed, though in one 
instance at least the tables were turned on the would- 
be murderers. It had been arranged by the Chinese 
garrison in Yarkand that they should at a given hour 
put all their Mohammedan fellow-soldiers to the 
sword, and this would doubtless have been done, had 
not the followers of the Prophet taken time by the 
forelock and risen against the too dilatory Chinese. 
At Khokand the last surviving son of Jehangir, who 
had been Taokwang's restless opponent, attempted to 
wrest from the Chinese the city which he pretended 
to regard as his own. Had this man been left to fight 
his own battles his career would probably have been 
a still shorter one than it was. But with the assistance 
of Yakoob Khan, an able and energetic officer, he 
succeeded in establishing himself as ruler in Khokand. 
He had no sooner, however, reached the pinnacle of 
his ambition than he was deposed by Yakoob, who, 
having won the laurels of victory, thought himself 
entitled to wear the crown of Empire. In the East 



3 so THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

such acts of treachery receive no condemnation so 
long as they are successful, and Yakoob's sovereignty 
received the seal of general recognition by a solemn 
act by which the title of Athalik Ghazi, "The Champion 
Father," was conferred on him at the hands of the 
Amir of Bokhara. Unfortunately for the Chinese, 
the movement which had swept over the wide regions 
south of the T'ienshan mountains spread into the 
province of Hi, where occurred a repetition of all those 
unspeakable horrors which usually accompany Asiatic 
outbreaks. In this case, however, the rebels and their 
opponents came into contact with a power which has 
not on all occasions shown itself friendly to the cause 
of the " Son of Heaven." For some time Russia 
endured in silence the local disturbances which broke 
out across her frontier, and ignored the raids which 
were not unfrequently made into her territory by 
flying rebels or retreating Imperialists. At length the 
disorders reached a point, or the Russians were good 
enough to think that they had done so, when they 
could no longer be endured, and the Muscovite 
authorities gave formal notice to the Chinese Govern- 
ment that they were about at once to march in 
and take possession of the province until such time 
as the Chinese Government was able effectively 
to reoccupy the territory. Meanwhile, the Chinese 
Government was moving up troops preparatory to a 
regular campaign against the rebels further south. 
Tso Chungt'ang, who had served against the T'aip'ings 
with distinction and honour, was made Viceroy of 
Shensi and Kansu, with complete control over the 
military movements. Fortunately Tso was a man of 



IMPERIAL VICTORIES 351 

proved ability and of great steadfastness of purpose. 
The task before him was one of supreme importance, 
and practically meant the recovery to the Chinese 
Crown of the whole of Central Asia, as well as the 
pacification of the two provinces over which he was 
directly called upon to preside. With indefatigable 
energy he set about the gigantic undertaking, and 
was fortunate in the choice of his subordinate, General 
Kinshun, who throughout the campaign showed 
marked military ability. By the end of 1872 Tso 
had closely besieged the important city of Suchow, 
which ultimately surrendered to his arms. Having 
achieved this success it was arranged that he should 
remain at the base to organise the expeditionary 
forces, while Kinshun should march across the dreary 
desert of Gobi which lies between the frontier of 
China Proper and Barkul. Without meeting with 
any serious resistance he captured that town, and 
then, returning to Hami, succeeded in adding the 
capture of that stronghold to his triumphs. With the 
force at his command, however, he felt unable to 
advance further into the rebel country, and in con- 
junction with Tso desired the establishment of com- 
munications over the three or four hundred miles 
which separate Hami from Suchow. Then followed 
one of those strange episodes which could not occur 
in any other country in the world except China. 
Chinese methods occasionally grind surely, but they 
always grind slowly, and with the most leisurely 
indifference the two chiefs arranged that on the 
several oases in the desert crops should be grown 
for the supply of the expedition which was to be 



352 THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

despatched into Central Asia. For the time being 
the soldiers were turned into farm labourers. They 
sowed their seed, they watered their fields, and when 
the autumn sun had ripened their crops they reaped 
their harvests. By this time (1876) Tso's legions 
were ready to advance. After a successful march 
Kinshun's troops appeared before Urumtsi, which to 
their surprise and relief surrendered without striking 
a blow. Manas was the next objective of the 
Imperial forces. Here the defence was ably con- 
ducted, and it was only by closely besieging the 
walls that at length the garrison was starved into 
the act of surrender. Experience had probably 
taught the rebels that a vanquished foe had no mercy 
to expect from Chinese soldiers, and when, therefore, 
the time came to surrender the city, the garrison 
marched out in fighting order, and with their women 
and children enclosed within solid phalanxes of men. 
Their object in adopting this order was obvious, and 
was put beyond doubt by a desperate charge which 
they made to force their way through the Chinese 
lines. In this they were unsuccessful, and while the 
lives of the women and children were spared by the 
special orders of Kinshun, no restraining hand was 
put on the soldiers to prevent the slaughter of the 
garrison. From this point onwards the Chinese 
triumphed all along the line, and though Yakoob 
Khan intervened on behalf of the rebels, he failed 
utterly to turn back the tide of war. After several 
defeats this celebrated leader returned to Korla, 
where he died from disease, or, as was broadly stated 
at the time, by a dose of poison. Aksu, Yarkand, 



THE TSUNGLI YAM EN 353 

Kashgar, and Khoten fell before the victorious 
Chinese generals, who thus in the year 1878 were 
able to report to the Throne that the Emperor was 
again master of his own. Honours were showered 
on the successful commanders, and Tso was admitted 
to the Grand Secretariat, was made a member of the 
Tsungli Yamen, and was promoted to be Viceroy of 
the two Kiang provinces. 

It is necessary now to revert to the period at the 
close of the war of i860. In order to make the 
sequence of events intelligible it was considered 
advisable to trace " from the ^gg to his apples " the 
history of the T'aip'ing movement and the rebellions 
which may be said directly or indirectly to have 
sprung from it. The system of administration in 
China is a very disjointed one, and events of high 
moment and concern may, and often do, occur in one 
part of that unwieldy Empire, and yet leave no trace 
on the rest of the country. The rebellions which 
have been dealt with in this chapter may be con- 
sidered in this sense to be little more than local 
outbreaks, and can scarcely be said to have affected 
the affairs at Peking. So soon as the Allies left for 
the south in i860 the Grand Council of State took 
into consideration the question of the future manage- 
ment of foreign affairs. Up to this time the Govern- 
ment, with that contemptuous disregard of everything 
relating to the Outer Barbarians which belongs to 
them, had relegated the management of foreign 
affairs to the Lifan Yuan, or " Colonial Office." 
That is to say, European affairs were classed with 
the trivial concerns of Mongolian and Central Asian 

24 



354 ^^^ NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

nomads. The continuation of this system was 
plainly impossible now that relations with foreign 
governments had become closer, and it was deter- 
mined therefore to establish a Bureau, called the 
Tsungli Yamen, or " Yamen of General Superin- 
tendence," which should serve the purposes of a 




COURTYARD OF TSUNGLI YAMEN AT PEKIN. 

Foreign Office. Prince Kung was nominated the 
first President, with Wenhsiang and Kweiliang as 
his colleagues. As the business increased additions 
were made to this board, and at the present time it 
numbers eleven magnates, who daily discuss foreign 
affairs, and do very little else. Sir Harry Parkes 
likened a visit to the Tsungli Yamen to lowering 



FOREIGN ARSENAL 355 

buckets into a bottomless well. The first few years 
of T'ungchih's reign passed quietly enough, and the 
Government discussed with the Foreign Ministers, 
who were now established in Legations at Peking, 
the means by which they might so strengthen the 
Empire as to make it a really independent State. 
Much good advice was lavished on these occasions, 
and some faint efforts were made to carry out the 
recommendations given. The main desire of the 
Regency was to strengthen the army, and with this 
object drill books were translated from English into 
Chinese, and arsenals were established at Foochow, 
Nanking, and Shanghai. At the first-named port 
a French naval officer, M. Giguel, was appointed 
Superintendent, and at Nanking Dr. Macartney, now 
Sir Haliday, presided over the management. These 
three establishments did good work within certain 
limits. But the Chinese military service suffers under 
the extreme disability of being a despised profession, 
and so long as this is the case arsenals may continue 
to turn out guns, and dockyards may produce ships, 
but the officers will be always inefficient and the men 
untrustworthy. But the Chinese have from all time 
depended more on negotiation and diplomacy to keep 
their enemies from the gate than on weapons of 
defence. Already they had repented themselves that 
they had granted many of the concessions which were 
embodied in the treaties, and they at once began to 
whittle down the more generous clauses of those 
agreements. The admission of Foreign Ministers 
into Peking was regarded as such an enormous 
privilege, and the Chinese took every means in their 



i/ 



356 THE NIENFEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

power to magnify the boon, that the first represen- 
tatives of the European Courts in the capital were 
overawed by the position which they were called 
upon to occupy, and in response to civil words and 
pleasant phrases from members of the Tsungli 
Yamen, showed a disposition to barter away the 
rights acquired by their countrymen. Among these 
officials was Mr. Burlingham, the representative of 
the United States of America. He was a man of 
considerable eloquence, of an enthusiastic tempera- 
ment, and of a nature malleable by skilful treatment. 
In the hands of Prince Kung and Wenhsiang he 
was as clay in the hands of the potters, and while 
readily accepting their views of the situation, believed 
implicitly in their loudly expressed desires for reform 
in the administration of the Empire. Having 
thoroughly indoctrinated him with their pretended 
opinions on these subjects, they invited him to lay 
aside his official position as regarded his own country 
and to accept the role of Chinese Minister to the 
Courts of Europe and America. In this character 
he visited the capitals of the Western world, and 
gained some share of success for the objects of his 
mission, which mainly consisted of the plea that 
China should be allowed to manage her own affairs 
irrespective of treaty obligations and foreign rights. 
While this enthusiastic envoy was describing to 
European listeners the wisdom, tolerance and 
liberality of the Chinese officials and people, an 
event occurred at Yangchow, in the province of 
Kiangsu, which shook the confidence of his hearers 
in the accuracy of his generous professions. Mr. 



A RIOT AT YANGCHOW 357 

Hudson Taylor the leading spirit in the China 
Inland Mission, taking advantage of the clause in 
the treaty which provided that " since the Christian 
religion, as professed by Protestants and Roman 
Catholics, inculcates the practice of virtue, and 
teaches man to do as he would be done by, persons 
teaching it or professing it shall alike be entitled to 
the protection of the Chinese authorities, nor shall 
any such, peaceably pursuing their calling, and not 
offending against the law, be persecuted or interfered 
with," established himself at Yangchow. It was 
never denied that he and his people had lived 
quietly with the people, and the only charges which 
were brought against him were the usual groundless 
accusations that he and his followers were in the 
habit of killing children and of using their eyes and 
hearts for medicinal purposes. Ridiculous as these 
charges were, they found ready acceptance with the 
mob, who, far from being held in check by the 
mandarins, were openly encouraged by them in their 
demonstrations against the foreigners. A Chinese 
mob is easily roused, and when once aroused is 
capable of great fury. In this case they assaulted 
the missionaries, burnt down their houses, and drove 
them from the city. An immediate demand for 
reparation was made by Mr. Medhurst, H.B.M. 
Consul at Shanghai, who required that the local 
mandarins should be degraded ; that certain Literati 
who had instituted the riots should be punished ; 
that two thousand taels should be paid as compen- 
sation for the wounded and ejected missionaries ; 
that these ministers of the gospel should be officially 



35^ THE NlENFEl AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELLIONS 

received back ; and that a tablet should be erected 
on which should be inscribed the history of the riot, 
with a declaration that foreigners have a treaty right 
to visit the interior of the Empire. At this time 
Tseng Kwofan, who it will be remembered won his 
laurels in engagements against the T'aip'ings, was 
Viceroy of the two Kiang provinces, and so soon as 
Mr. Medhurst's terms were referred to him he at 
once vetoed the demands for the punishment of the 
Literati and for the erection of the tablet. Both Mr. 
Medhurst and Sir Rutherford Alcock, who was the 
British Minister at Peking, had been trained in the 
pre-Legation-at-Peking system of dealing with the 
local authorities, and with the full permission of his 
chief, the Consul, quite in the old and most efficacious 
manner, steamed up the Yangtsze with a small naval 
squadron, and anchored his ships opposite the walls 
of Nanking. The effect was instantaneous, as similar 
demonstrations have always proved with the Chinese, 
and every condition was promptly complied with, 
the only modification being that the tablet which Mr. 
Medhurst had declared should be of stone was, in 
consideration for Tseng Kwofan's feelings, set up in 
wood. At the same time a proclamation was issued 
in which the local authorities were held up to repro- 
bation, the condign punishment of the ringleaders 
was announced, and the Viceroyal consent was given 
to the other terms of reparation proposed. The 
effect of Mr. Medhurst's judicious treatment of the 
emergency has since shown itself to be lasting and 
salutary. Since the memorable day in which he 
entered Yangchow, accompanied by an escort of four 



MURDER OF A FRENCHMAN 359 

hundred marines and sailors, the city from having 
been one of the most anti-foreign centres in the 
Empire, has become eminently peaceable and law- 
abiding. 

It is noticeable that the anti-foreign outbursts 
which have so frequently occurred have been generally, 
though not always, accompanied by similar riots in 
other parts of the country. Just about this time 
anti-missionary rebellions took place in Formosa, at 
Swatow, Foochow, and in the province of Szech'uan, 
where Pere Rigaud was unfortunately murdered. 
Following the example set by Mr. Medhurst, M. de 
Rochechouart went personally to the scene of the 
last outbreak, and was able successfully to arrange 
terms which were satisfactory both to the Minister 
and to the Government which he represented. These 
matters were scarcely settled when an outbreak of 
more than usual violence occurred in Tientsin (June, 
1870). 




XIII 

THE CLOSE OF T'UNGCHIH'S REIGN AND THE FIRST 
YEARS OF THAT OF KWANGHSU. 

For some time ill-will had been manifested towards 
the Roman Catholic establishments at Tientsin, and 
more especially against the orphanage which had 
been established by Sisters of Mercy ; and at the end 
of May an epidemic, which occurred in that establish- 
ment, and which proved especially fatal, aroused the 
popular feeling to frenzy. There has always been a 
superstitious belief amongst Chinamen that Europeans 
are in the habit of using the eyes and hearts of 
deceased infants for medicinal purposes, and the 
numerous deaths which occurred at this time led 
the ignorant townspeople to give credence to the 
folly. So threatening did the mob become that the 
Sisters thought it wise to offer to allow a committee 
of five from among the rioters to examine the 
premises. How far this concession may have met 
the necessities of the case it is difficult to say. But 
the French Consul, deeming it an unworthy surrender 
to menace, repaired to the orphanage and drove the 

committee of five into the street. Against this sum- 

360 



THE TIENTSIN MASSACRE 36 1 

mary proceeding the Chinese District Magistrate 
strongly protested, and expressed fear that unless 
some such arrangement were made with the people 
the consequences might be serious. This threat was 
speedily fulfilled, and on the 21st of June a surging 
crowd assembled around the Orphanage. The French 
Consul, recognising the stormy outlook, hurried 
off to Chung How, the Superintendent of Foreign 
Trade, who was the senior native authority on the 
spot, and urged him to take steps to quell the mob. 
It is said that the Consul was in a " state of excite- 
ment bordering on insanity." But however that may 
be, Chung How was either unwilling or unable to 
act as demanded, and the Consul made his way out 
into the mob, pistol in hand. Accounts vary as to 
what subsequently happened. It is said that he fired 
into the crowd, but, whether this be so or not, it is 
certain that he was speedily knocked down and 
beaten to death. 

The mob, having once tasted blood, rushed to the 
Sisters' Orphanage, where they murdered the unfor- 
tunate ladies, after inflicting on them all kinds of 
nameless barbarities. They then set fire to the 
buildings, having, however, had the humanity to 
allow the children to escape. In their mad fury they 
murdered a Russian and his young bride, whom they 
took to be French, and who were trying to make 
their escape to the foreign settlement. In all twenty 
foreigners were killed, and as many more Chinese 
attendants. This fiendish massacre was doubtless 
due partly to ignorance, but principally to the 
appearance at this time of a work entitled " Death 



362 THE CLOSE OF T^UNGCHIH's REIGN 

Blow to Corrupt Doctrines," which describes the 
worship of the Christians in terms so nearly identical 
with those used by Gibbon in his history of the early 
persecutions at Rome, that we are tempted to quote 
the words of the author of the " Decline and Fall of 
the Roman Empire." In the passage referred to 
Gibbon states that the Christians " were regarded 
as the most wicked of human kind, who practised in 
their dark recesses every abomination that a depraved 
fancy could suggest, and who solicited the favour of 
their unknown God by the sacrifice of every moral 
virtue. There were many who pretended to confess 
or to relate the ceremonies of the abhorred society. 
It was asserted that a new-born infant, entirely 
covered over with flour, was presented, like some 
mystic symbol of initiation, to the knife of the 
proselyte, who unknowingly inflicted many a 
secret and mortal wound on the innocent victim 
of his error ; and as soon as the cruel deed was 
perpetrated the sectaries drank up the blood, 
greedily tore asunder the quivering members, and 
pledged themselves to eternal secrecy by a mutual 
consciousness of guilt. It was as confidently affirmed 
that this inhuman sacrifice was succeeded by a 
suitable entertainment, in which intemperance 
served as a provocation to brutal lust ; till at the 
appointed moment, the lights were suddenly ex- 
tinguished, shame was banished, nature was for- 
gotten ; and, as accident might direct, the darkness 
of the night was polluted by the commerce of sisters 
and brothers, of sons and of mothers." Vigorous 
protests were made to the Chinese Government 



WADERS IMPEACHMENT 363 

against the continued distribution of this infamous 
work, and at the same time the Foreign Ministers 
presented a united demand for the punishment of 
the ringleaders of the riot, both official and non- 
official, and for compensation for the murders com- 
mitted. 

At this time Tseng Kwofan, who had been pro- 
moted from the Viceroyalty of the two Kiang, to the 
same position in the metropolitan province, was 
residing at Paoting Fu, the provincial capital. By 
Imperial decree he was appointed, together with 
Chung How, to inquire into the circumstances of the 
massacre. But Tseng was getting old, and the strong 
prejudice which he had always exhibited against 
foreigners disinclined him to take any active steps to 
punish the perpetrators of the atrocities. Sir Thomas 
Wade, who at this time represented England at 
Peking, was not a man, however, tamely to submit to 
be put off by unsympathetic officials, and on Tseng 
showing signs of dilatoriness, he addressed a remon- 
strance direct to Prince Kung in these terms. " As 
to the atrocities committed, although there is no 
doubt about the popular exasperation, there is the 
strongest reason to doubt that the destruction of the 
religious establishments, and the murder of their 
occupants, were exclusively the work of the ignorant 
multitude. The chief actors in the affair are stated to 
have been the fire brigades, and the banded villains 
known as the Hunsing Tzu. These were ready for 
the attack, and as soon as the gong sounded, fell in, 
provided with deadly weapons. They were reinforced 
by soldiers and Yamen followers, and conspicuously 



364 THE CLOSE OF T^UNGCHIH^S REIGN 

directed by a man with the title of Titu (Major- 
General), the ex-rebel Chen Kwojul. . . . Yet after 
more than seventy days' delay what has been done 
towards the satisfaction of justice ? Some few of the 
lower class of criminals have been arrested, the more 
important of these not having been discoverable until 
their names and their whereabouts were supplied by 
the French Legation. The guilty magistrates were 
left for twenty days after the massacre at their posts, 
their energies being devoted throughout that period, 
not to the detection of persons guilty of a share in 
the crime, but to the examination under torture of 
unfortunate Christians, from whom it was hoped that 
confessions might be extorted in such a form as 
to tell favourably for their persecutors. . . . The 
common people, seeing no punishment inflicted on 
any one, persuaded themselves that the massacre was 
a meritorious act. Songs are sung in honour of it, and 
paintings of it are circulated representing officials as 
approving spectators of the crime. ... I must add, in 
conclusion, what it will give your Imperial Highness 
little pleasure to read, as little certainly as to myself 
to write ; but the occasion requires that I should 
speak out. It is very generally believed that, although 
your Imperial Highness and the wiser of your col- 
leagues are opposed to any policy that would involve 
a rupture with foreign Powers, there are other leading 
men in China whose dream is the expulsion of the 
Barbarian, and who, if they were not the immediate 
instigators of the movement of the 21st of June, have 
heartily approved its atrocities ; have exerted them- 
selves to prevent the punishment of the guilty parties, 



LI HUNGCHANG AT TIENTSIN 365 

official and non-official ; and are even now urging on 
the Central Government the expediency of directing a 
like murderous enterprise against all foreigners that 
may be found on Chinese ground." 

This, and other remonstrances from Sir Thomas 
Wade's colleagues at Peking, at length compelled the 
Government to take action, but at the same time it 
was generally acknowledged that the continuance of 
Tseng Kwofan in his existing post stood as a bar to 
the satisfaction of the foreign demands. It so hap- 
pened that at this juncture the Viceroy of the twoKiang 
provinces was murdered by a fanatic in the streets of 
Nanking, and the opportunity was seized upon, there- 
fore, of transferring Tseng to this thus vacated office, 
and of bringing Li Hungchang from Hukwang to the 
metropolitan province. " We command Li Hung- 
chang," so ran the Imperial Edict, "who has been 
translated to the Viceroyalty of Chihli, to proceed 
post to Tientsin, there, in concert with Tseng Kwofan, 
Ting Jihch'ang, and Cheng Lin, to conduct the 
inquiry still open, and take the necessary action. . . . 
Respect this." Though thus commanded to act in 
concert with his colleagues, a free hand was practically 
given to Li, who at once, taking a firm grip of the 
situation, gave the people of Tientsin plainly to 
understand that any recrudescence of the anti-foreign 
agitation would be sternly repressed. Under this new 
regime the investigations proceeded apace, with the 
result that the Prefect and District Magistrate were 
sentenced to banishment to Manchuria ; that twenty 
of the rioters were condemned to death ; and that 
twenty-one were consigned to banishment. It is 



366 



THE CLOSE OF 'fUNGCHIH's REIGN 



always difficult to estimate the real value of such a 
sentence as that passed on the culpable officials. It 
not unfrequently happens that in response to foreign 
pressure a mandarin is removed from a post, and 
ostensibly degraded, while in fact he may only be 
moved to an office of greater honour and emolument, 
and a certain amount of doubt must always rest on 
the just identification of rioters, who are offered up on 




THE COURTYARD OF AN INN IN MANCHURIA. 

the execution ground to propitiate outraged foreign 
feeling. Cases have happened of prisoners, who have 
been condemned for other crimes, being executed to 
satisfy the numerical balance of victims to be punished 
for murders committed. In this instance, however, 
no doubt seems to have arisen about the guilt of six- 
teen of the malefactors, and these were therefore 
executed on the i8th of October, 1870. Thecircum- 



EXECUTION OF CRIMINALS 367 

stances, however, which attended their decapitation 
were such as to show that they were rather re- 
garded as martyrs in a holy cause than as criminals 
guilty of heinous crimes. In a report to Sir Thomas 
Wade the Consul on the spot thus describes the 
scene : " About two hundred police and soldiers 
escorted them (the criminals) from the jail to the 
magistrate's court room, where they were marshalled, 
sixteen in all. None of them would kneel to be bound 
when ordered to do so. They were all dressed in what 
is everywhere stated to be a Government present, 
viz., new silk clothes, and wore on their feet shoes 
of elegant manufacture. Their hair was dressed after 
the female fashion, in various modes ; and ornaments 
such as those seen on the heads of Chinese ladies were 
stuck in their head-dresses." The Russian Ambassa- 
dor not being satisfied that the four men charged with 
the murder of his compatriots were really guilty of 
the crime laid to their charge, secured them a reprieve, 
which resulted in two being sent into banishment, and 
the remaining two following their associates to the 
execution ground. Subsequent inquiry proved that 
the sentence on the prefect and magistrate was of 
the illusory nature common to such cases. Instead 
of going on a weary journey to Manchuria they were 
allowed to return to the bosom of their families, 
where no doubt they received the ovations which are 
commonly lavished on patriots. 

The Titu, Chen Kwojui, of whom Sir Thomas 
Wade spoke, was a veritable stormy petrel. His 
career had been chequered by many vicissitudes. He 
had begun life as a T'aip'ing rebel, and had deserted 



368 THE CLOSE OF 'fUNGCHIH's REIGN 

the banners which had sheltered him for the Imperial 
ranks in return for promotion and increased pay. His 
hatred of foreigners amounted almost to a mania, and 
his presence in the same town with Europeans was 
invariably the precursor of riots and disturbances. It 
is said that an accident led him to visit Tientsin at 
the moment of the outbreak and certain it is that he 
led on the mob to the attack. Being 2. persona grata 
with the Powers at Peking he was carefully shielded 
from all harm, and the utmost step that Sir Thomas 
Wade could persuade the Tsungli Yamen to take, 
was to send him back to Nanking and there to place 
him under surveillance. They agreed, however, to 
pay the sum of 400,000 taels to France as compen- 
sation for the murder of the Sisters of Mercy, and 
consented to despatch Chung How on a special 
embassy to Paris to express the regret of the Govern- 
ment for the murderous outbreak. It will be remem- 
bered that Chung How was the presiding mandarin 
at the time of the massacre, and it was therefore 
peculiarly fitting and proper that his should be the 
lips to utter the apologies and regrets. 

The excitement which had been stirred up in con- 
nection with the missionary question by these events 
was by no means confined to Tientsin and the neigh- 
bourhood, but was widely spread over many parts of 
the country. Distinct evidence had been furnished 
that this unrest was fomented, as Sir Thomas Wade 
had pointed out, by some of the highest officers of 
state, and the occasion was characteristically seized 
upon by the Tsungli Yamen to attempt to minimise 
the Treaty rights as regarded the teaching of Christ- 



THE MISSIONARY DIFFICULTY 369 

ianity. With this view the Yamen drew up eight 
articles for the regulation of missionary undertakings, 
and enclosed them in a letter addressed to the various 
foreign Legations, which in each case ran as follows : 

" Sir, — In relation to the missionary question, the 
members of the Foreign Office are apprehensive lest 
in their efforts to manage the various points connected 
with it, they should interrupt the good relations exist- 
ing between this and other Governments, and have 
therefore drawn up several rules upon the subject. 
These are now enclosed, with an explanatory minute,, 
for your examination, and we hope that you will 
take them into careful consideration." 

Sufficient comprehensiveness cannot be denied to 
these eight articles, which, briefly stated, were " that 
foreign orphanages should be abolished ; that women 
should not be allowed to enter the churches, nor 
Sisters of Charity to live in China ; that missionaries 
must conform to the laws and customs of China, and 
must submit themselves to the authority of the 
Chinese magistrates ; that since the individuals who 
commit disorders ordinarily belong to the lowest class 
of the people, accusations, in case of riots, must not be 
brought against the Literati; and that before a man be 
permitted to become a Christian, he must be examined 
as to whether he had undergone any sentence or com- 
mitted any crime." These articles were so palpably 
contrary to the spirit of the treaty, that the ministers 
one and all declined to entertain the consideration 
of them for a moment, and matters were allowed to 

25 



370 THE CLOSE OF T UNGCHIH S REIGN 

revert to the status quo ante. The Chinese have 
always shown themselves singularly tolerant of faiths 
other than their own, more especially when the new 
religions are professed only by strangers and are not 
of a proselytising nature. They have allowed Moham- 
medans to live in their midst and to hold offices of 
all ranks, without imposing on them the slightest 
disability, and it is only when native converts decline 
to fall in to the popular customs, and to take part in 
the national festivals which mark the seasons of the 
years, that they come into collision with their fellow- 
countrymen. In China, as in other polytheistic 
countries, innumerable deities are closely interwoven 
with all business and pleasure, and with every act of 
public and private life. To renounce these gods and 
goddesses is therefore to interfere with every custom 
and practice of society. It is held impossible for 
Christians to take part or lot in any matters polluted 
by the stain of idolatry, and with holy horror they 
decline to subscribe to the celebration of the high 
days and festivals which are kept at the solstices, the 
opening of spring, and other public holidays in the 
year. All this places them in antagonism with their 
fellow-citizens. But the mandarins have a still more 
definite cause of complaint when native Christians, 
who are accused of crimes, enlist the advocacy of the 
missionaries in the native courts. The existence in 
their midst of congregations which observe rights and 
ceremonies apart from those practised by the people 
at large, gives rise to much ill-feeling, and one can 
only admire the courage and self-sacrifice of those men 
and women who, knowing the dangers to which they 



THE CHOICE OF AN IMPERIAL BRIDE 3/ 1 

are exposed, devote their lives to the dissemination 
of the doctrines of Christ in the midst of a hostile 
population. From the nature of the case it is inevit- 
able that offences will come, and so long as Christ- 
ianity is represented by a small struggling minority, 
we must expect persecutions and troubles to arise. 

While all these matters were disturbing the counsels 
of the Government, the Emperor was growing in 
years, and in 1872 he had reached the time of life 
(sixteen) when, according to Chinese ideas, he should 
take to himself an Empress. The event was one of 
momentous national importance, and vast prepara- 
tions were made to secure the selection of a fitting 
consort for so lofty a monarch. By the dynastic 
rules it is laid down that the Empress shall always be 
a Manchu by race and the daughter of a member of 
one of the eight military banners. Apart from these 
conditions there is nothing to prevent the daughter 
of a Manchu private from being raised to the 
" Dragon Throne." Custom forbids that an Imperial 
bridegroom, any more than bridegrooms of lower 
degree, should even see his bride before the wedding 
night, and it was plainly impossible, therefore, that 
His Majesty T'ungchih should take any personal 
part in the selection. This duty devolved by neces- 
sity on the Dowager Empresses, and in their zeal for 
the Emperor's happiness they threw a wide net over 
all the eligible young ladies in the country. The 
position of the Empress has so many disabilities that 
it is not sought after with the eagerness that might 
be expected, and it is said that a number of young 
ladies affect a limp, or a hunch back, or some other 



372 



THE CLOSE OF TUNGCHIH S REIGN 



deformity, in order to escape from the Imperial 
honour. In this case, however, between six and 





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A MANCHU SWEETMEAT-SELLER. 



seven hundred Manchu maidens were brought to 
the palace for the Empresses' inspection. By a 



NUPTIAL CEREMONIES 373 

process of elimination these great ladies, in some 
weeks, reduced the number to two, and finally their 
choice fell on a young lady named Ahluta. The 
father of this damsel was a man of distinction, having 
taken the highest literary honours obtainable at the 
competitive examinations, and had imparted, so it 
was said, some of his learning to the future Empress. 
So soon as the choice was made preparations were 
begun for the ceremony, and as a preliminary step 
the Astronomical Board was called upon to determine 
by the stars the day and hour which would present 
the most felicitous moment for the august union. 
Meanwhile, in preparation for the duties of his new 
state, four young ladies, known as Professors of 
Matrimony, were introduced into the Emperor's 
Palace, who, as was generally reported, satisfactorily 
performed their vicarious roles until the arrival of 
Ahluta. The midnight of October i6, 1872, was 
the time chosen for the ceremony, and for days 
beforehand countless processions passed from the 
bride's home to the palace bearing her ti^ousseau 
and belongings. The road leading to the palace 
was made smooth, and, to mark the occasion, was 
thickly covered with sand of the Imperial yellow 
colour. On the day preceding the wedding high 
officials bore in solemn state a tablet of gold con- 
stituting Ahluta Empress, together with a sceptre 
and a seal, which they presented to the lady ; and at 
the hour appointed the bridal procession left for the 
palace attended by a large sprinkling of State officials 
with escorts and aides-de-camp. As it was essential 
that Ahluta should reach the palace at the exact 



374 THE CLOSE OF t'UNGCHIH's REIGN 

moment prescribed by the Astronomical Board, a 
member of that learned body walked by the side 
of the bridal chair with a burning joss-stick in his 
hand, which was so arranged as to mark the progress 
of time. The result was satisfactory, and the Emperor 
had the pleasure of receiving his consort neither 
before nor after the felicitous instant which had been 
proclaimed. Following this great lady came four 
other young maidens who were destined to play the 
part in the Imperial harem of secondary wives of 
the first rank. By the laws of the Empire the 
Emperor is entitled to fill his cup of felicity with 
four ladies of the first grade, twenty-seven of the 
second, and eighty-one of the third. T'ungchih, 
however, contented himself with the first arrivals, 
and probably it was well for him that he did so. 

The marriage of an Emperor of China is always 
held to announce his arrival at years of discretion, 
and is therefore equivalent to coming of age amongst 
ourselves. With the advent of an Empress to share 
his throne the Regency disappears, and the Emperor 
is acknowledged to be, theoretically, a fit and proper 
person to govern his immense Empire, and to exer- 
cise rule over the four hundred million subjects who 
obey his will. Among the duties which T'ungchih's 
new position imposed upon him was that of holding 
communication with the ministers of the Treaty 
Powers, This obligation his father had accepted by 
the terms of the treaty of 1858, but by his judiciously 
timed retreat to Jehol he had successfully avoided 
carrying it out. The long minority of T'ungchih 
had further placed in abeyance the question of 



THE AUDIENCE QUESTION 375 

Imperial audiences — a delay for which the Tsungli 
Yamen was profoundly grateful. The question had 
always been a thorny one. The idea of any repre- 
sentative of a foreign State entering the Imperial 
presence without striking his forehead on the floor 
was so preposterous in the eyes of the mandarins 
that they resisted the introduction of all discussion 
on the subject so long as they were able. But the 
time had now come when it had again to be faced. 
They were perfectly aware that the k'ot'ow would 
have to be given up. But though thus driven 
from their first entrenchment they were prepared 
strenuously to defend every succeeding line. Lord 
Macartney had bent the knee on entering the 
presence of Ch'ienlung. They pleaded, therefore, 
that foreign ministers should follow this notable 
example. The foreign ministers, however, pointed 
to the treaty, in which it was laid down that no 
minister " should be called upon to perform any 
ceremony derogatory to him as representing the 
Sovereign of an independent nation on a footing 
of equality with that of China," and explained that 
to bend the knee would obviously be to perform a 
derogatory ceremony. This answer was conclusive, 
and it was finally agreed that whenever it should 
please the Emperor to grant an audience to the 
foreign ministers they should be expected only to 
bow thrice on entering the Imperial presence. 

In June, 1873, the Emperor was moved to receive 
the ministers in solemn audience. It was reported 
at the time that this determination was mainly due 
to curiosity on the part of T'ungchih, who was 



37^ THE CLOSE OF T'uNGCHIH's REIGN 

desirous of seeing what sort of men the Envoys 
were who had come from so great a distance to 
his Court. But however that may be, on the 15th 
of the month an edict appeared, couched in the 
following terms : " The Tsungli Yamen having pre- 
sented a Memorial to the effect that the foreign 
ministers residing in Peking have implored us to 
grant an audience that they may deliver letters 
from their Governments, We command that the 
foreign ministers residing in Peking, who have 
brought letters from their Governments, be accorded 
audience. Respect this." The tone of this decree 
was not of hopeful augury. There was a dictatorial 
and discourteous air about it which, whether due to 
ignorance or impertinence, was, to say the least, 
unfortunate. Its appearance, however, put the 
Tsungli Yamen in a flutter, and for ten days a brisk 
discussion was carried on with the Legations as to the 
etiquette which was to be observed on the occasion. 

In a land such as China, where etiquette is the 
very breath of the nostrils of the officials, any modifi- 
cation in ceremonial practice, however trifling it may 
appear to Europeans, is regarded as being of vital 
importance. The mandarins had been obliged to 
yield the points of the k'ot'ow and the genuflexion, 
but there still remained to them the possibility of 
humiliating the ministers by inducing them to make 
their bows in a hall where it is customary for the 
Emperor to receive the envoys of tributary states. 
This hall, the Tziikwang Ko, or " Pavilion of Purple 
Light," is situated outside the palace, and is, as the 
native guide-books tell us, the place where New- Year 



IN HIS IMPERIAL PRESENCE 377 

receptions are granted to the outer tribes, and where 
wrestling and mihtary exercises are performed for 
the amusement of the Emperor. All this must have 
been perfectly well known to the foreign ministers, 
who were, however, so elated at the idea of entering 
the presence of the " Son of Heaven " that they 
agreed to accept the slur implied by the choice of 
the building. The 29th of June was the day fixed 
for the ceremony, and the time determined by the 
Emperor was the very inconvenient hour of six 
o'clock in the morning. Etiquette entailed upon 
the ministers the necessity of being in readiness 
even still earlier. On arriving at the palace grounds 
the six ministers, representing England, France, 
America, Russia, the Netherlands, and Japan, were 
escorted to the " Palace of Seasonableness," a temple 
in which the Emperor is accustomed to pray for rain. 
Here light refreshments were offered to their expect- 
ing Excellencies, and after half an hour had been 
wasted in the consumption of confectionery and tea 
the envoys were conducted to a large tent pitched 
near the " Pavilion of Purple Light." A delay of an 
hour and a half was here endured, and at last the 
Japanese Ambassador, in virtue of his ambassadorial 
rank, was summoned to the presence. So soon as 
this official was dismissed the Western ministers were 
admitted into the hall, at the end of which T'ungchih 
was discovered, seated cross-legged, after the Manchu 
fashion, on a raised dais surrounded by princes and 
ministers of State. In accordance with the pre- 
arranged programme, the ministers advanced bow- 
ing, and an address in Chinese having been read. 



378 THE CLOSE OF T^UNGCHIH^S REIGN 

Prince Kung fell on his knees and went through the 
form of receiving the return message vouchsafed by 
the Emperor. Charged with the weighty words of 
the " Son of Heaven," he rose and descended the 
steps from the dais with his arms extended in imi- 
tation of the way in which Confucius, that great 
master of make-believe, used to practise leaving 
the presence of his Sovereign as though in a state 
of agitation and alarm. The ministers then, having 
placed their letters of credence on the table which 
stood before His Imperial Majesty, made their bows 
and retired a reculons. 

The whole history of this ceremony, like that of 
most of our dealings with the Chinese, is a signal 
example of the glamour which the Celestials have 
ever succeeded in throwing over their pretensions in 
the eyes of Europeans. The chief blot in our policy 
with China up till the Japanese War has been the 
half-concealed admission that we were in China 
purely on benevolent sufferance. In the relations 
between ourselves and the mandarins we have in all 
cases been the suppliants, and they the dispensers 
of privileges. Their haughty attitude of stand-off- 
wardness has in these circumstances had its effect, 
and our communications with them have been too 
often marked by undue deference. The attitude of 
our Government towards Li Hungchang during his 
recent visit to this country was an instance in point. 
Neither his official position nor his private character 
entitled him in any way to the adulation which was 
shown him, and which he, after the manner of 
Orientals, repaid by acts of grave discourtesy. 



OFFICIAL IMPERTINENCE 3/9 

Nevertheless, these last were entirely overlooked by 
a mistaken consideration, and he doubtless left our 
shores satisfied that his countrymen are correct when 
they hold that we are but hangers-on to the Imperial 
bounty of the " Son of Heaven " and his ministers. 
That the reception of the foreign ministers by 
T'ungchih was a step in the right direction there 
can be no doubt, but it is also plain that a mistake 
was made in consenting to accept the " Pavilion of 
Purple Light " as the scene of the ceremony. The 
remark made by a member of the Tsungli Yamen to 
one of the foreign ministers, that " The princes who 
waited on the Emperor had been surprised and 
pleased at the demeanour of himself and his col- 
leagues," effectively displayed the patronising attitude 
which the mandarins chose to adopt on the occasion, 
and to which we unfortunately submitted. 

Though for the nonce the foreign relations of the 
Empire were at this time peaceful, the internal affairs 
of the country were far from being undisturbed. The 
rebellion which had decimated the province of Yunnan 
for so many years had been, it is true, brought to 
a conclusion by the surrender of Tali Fu. But the 
country was left desolate. The ravages of both the 
insurgents and the Imperial forces had robbed the 
surviving wretched inhabitants of everything that 
makes life worth having, while disease and famine 
carried off thousands of those who, as by a miracle, 
had survived the sword. In response to an appeal 
from the distressful country the Emperor remitted all 
the taxes due up to date, and by gifts of land and 
other inducements attempted to entice yeomen from 



380 THE CLOSE OF t'uNGCHIH'S REIGN 

the neighbouring provinces to take up the deserted 
farms. The success of these efforts was only partial, 
and to this day the province bears traces of the iron 
heel of the Mohammedans. In the north-western 
provinces of Kansu and Shensi legislative endeavours 
were made to restore to those districts some glimpse 
of their former prosperity, and it is amusing to find, 
in the light of recent experience, that the military 
authorities could suggest nothing better for the 
preservation of the peace of the provinces than that 
the army, which had apparently been allowed to 
revert to civil life, should be mustered again and 
armed with bows and arrows. Not only, however, 
had the troops become disorganised, but according to 
the Literary Chancellor of the Viceroyalty, the civil 
population was suffering demoralisation from the 
suspension of the competitive examinations, and with 
all the weight of his authority he went on to recom- 
mend, in the pages of the Peking Gazette^ that these 
should be resumed, and, if this should be done, he 
did " not despair of the Book of Poetry having its 
duly mollifying effect on the manners of the people." 
The same implicit faith in the humanising tendency 
of this ancient work was, according to the same 
periodical, held at this time by the Governor of 
Canton, who suggested that a dissemination of its 
classic verses would be a fit and proper remedy for 
the clan fights which were then (1873) disturbing the 
peace of his province. 

While these matters were claiming the attention of 
the Imperial Government a despatch from Li Han- 
chang, a brother of our late visitor, announced the 



A DIFFICULTY WITH JAPAN 38 1 

outbreak of a rebellion in Hunan, and at the same 
time the Yellow River, " China's Sorrow," burst its 
banks and flooded thousands of square miles of 
territory. 

Before the year closed a cloud arose on the Eastern 
sea which seriously threatened a foreign war. Japan 
had long had grievances against her huge neighbour, 
and like other foreign Powers had found unassisted 
diplomacy inadequate to extract the reparation 
which was due. On repeated occasions shipwrecked 
Japanese sailors had been cruelly put to death by the 
inhabitants of the Island of Formosa. For these 
outrages the Chinese declared themselves unable to 
make any compensation, or to apply any remedy. 
In these circumstances the Japanese landed a force 
on the island, and despatched a special envoy to 
Peking to make a final attempt at arriving at a 
peaceful solution of the difficulty. In presence of 
these energetic measures the Chinese were disposed 
to yield, but they did so with an ill grace. They 
admitted their liability but declined to name any 
fixed sum which should be paid, or any date as to 
when it should become due. This attitude was so 
eminently unsatisfactory that the Japanese envoy 
had no other course to pursue than to prepare to 
leave Peking, and was on the point of taking his 
departure when Sir Thomas Wade intervened as a 
mediator between the disputants, and prevented a 
breach of the peace by making himself personally 
responsible for the payment of the 500,000 taels 
demanded by the Japanese. 

It is always difficult to determine whose is the 



382 THE CLOSE OF 'fUNGCHIH's REIGN 

power behind the Throne which directs political 
events in China. In the early days of T'ungchih's 
accession to power it was commonly reported that 
he was inclined to resent the imposition of the 
leading strings by which the Dowager Empresses, 
and his ministers, attempted to direct his course. 
Rumours were even afloat that, like another Haroun- 
al-Raschid, it was his wont to escape from the palace 
at night time and wander through the city that he 
might become acquainted in propria persona with 
the actual condition of his subjects. It was said 
that Prince Kung's influence was particularly dis- 
tasteful to him, and the people of the capital were, 
therefore, not much surprised when an edict ap- 
peared degrading that prince for the use of 
" language in very many respects unbecoming " to 
his Imperial kinsman. That this degradation was 
fiercely resented by the Empresses is proved by the 
fact that on the very next day a decree appeared 
under their signatures manual, reinstating the Prince 
in his hereditary rank and honours. It would appear 
from this that the Emperor had resisted the pressure 
brought to bear upon him by the Dowager ladies, 
and that when they insisted, had saved " his face " 
by throwing the responsibility of the measure upon 
them. In fact at this period there was as little peace 
inside the palace walls, as there was in the outlying 
provinces of the Empire. No secrets are allowed to 
escape beyond the pink walls of the palace, and it is 
only possible to guess at much that goes on within 
those sacred precincts by the announcements which 
are officially promulgated. Towards the end of the 



DEATH OF t'uNGCHIH 383 

year 1874 an edict appeared in the Peking Gazette 
stating that the Emperor was " happily " ill with an 
attack of small-pox, and an effusively dutiful decree 
was thereupon published in his name, in which he 
besought the Dowager Empresses to undertake in 
their " overflowing benevolence " the administration 
of the Empire during his illness. For some days the 
Imperial patient was said to be progressing favour- 
ably, and honours were heaped on the physicians 
who had charge of his case. But the good effected 
by these learned men was only temporary. A turn 
for the worse set in, and on the 12th of January, 1875, 
he became " a guest on high." 

This event gave rise to one of those palace 
intrigues which are common in Eastern countries. 
As has been indicated the Dowager Empresses had 
on many occasions found the young Emperor a 
refractory pupil, and they were naturally desirous of 
taking advantage of the opportunity thus afforded 
them of regaining the control of affairs, which custom 
had compelled them to give up when T'ungchih took 
to himself an Empress and proclaimed his majority. 
The one obstacle in their way was the now widowed 
Empress who, as was well known, might possibly 
have given birth to an heir to the throne. In such a 
case she naturally would have become the Regent 
during her son's minority, and this the elder ladies 
determined to put beyond the range of possibility. 
With a total disregard of the regulations ordering the 
Imperial succession, they, without any delay, set 
about making a choice of an heir to T'ungchih. 
There were two candidates for this distinguished 



384 THE CLOSE OF t'UNGCHIH's REIGN 

honour. One was the son of Prince Kung, who had 
arrived at years of discretion, and the other was 
Tsait'ien, the infant son of Prince Ch'un. Prince 
Kung's son was naturally the one which should have 
been chosen as being the eldest son of the eldest 
uncle of the late Emperor. But in the eyes of the 
Dowager Empresses there were two fatal objections 
to his candidature. He was of age, and therefore 
would have supreme control of affairs, and, besides, 
his accession would have necessitated the retirement 
of Prince Kung, who could not, in accordance with 
the Chinese ideas of filial piety, have served under 
his son. Neither of these objections were prominent 
in the case of Tsait'ien, who was barely four years 
old, and whose succession to the throne would give a 
new lease of power to the intriguing ladies. His 
father also, not having taken any public part in 
political life, would have no office to vacate. 
Tsait'ien, therefore, was chosen, and by a pious 
fiction, common to Chinese practice, he was adopted 
as the son, not of T'ungchih, but of the preceding 
Emperor, Hsienfeng. But Ahluta still remained, 
and it did not surprise those who had watched the 
course of events to hear that the poor lady had been 
seized with illness which in a few days proved fatal 
(29th of March, 1875). It suited nobody's purpose 
to inquire too closely into the nature of the malady 
which had so conveniently removed a political diffi- 
culty, and certain it is that whatever may have been 
the Dowager Empresses' attitude towards her when 
alive, she had no sooner passed into the shades than 
they lavished encomiums upon her. The pages of the 



THE empress's VIRTUES 385 

Peking Gazette were filled with her good deeds, and 
by common consent the posthumous title was con- 
ferred upon her of " The filial, wise, excellent, yield- 
ing, chaste, careful, virtuous, and intelligent Queen I, 
who governed her actions by the laws of Heaven, and 
whose life added lustre to the teachings of the Sages." 

Meanwhile strangely demonstrative decrees were 
issued under the signature of the infant Emperor 
proclaiming, in all the fanciful verbiage of the East, 
his imaginary grief at the death of his predecessor, 
and belauding the virtues which he chose to attribute 
to him. " Prostrate upon the earth," he wrote, " We 
bewail Our grief to Heaven, vainly stretching out Our 
hands in lamentation." It now only remained to 
choose an Imperial epithet for the infant " Son of 
Heaven," and in accordance with the prescribed 
forms a number of complimentary titles were sub- 
mitted for selection to Tsait'ien, who is supposed to 
have chosen the designation of Kwanghsu or " The 
Succession of Glory." 

One of the grievances which the Dowager 
Empresses had against T'ungchih was, that by a 
laxity of administration he had allowed the palace 
eunuchs to assume functions and exercise powers to 
which they were in no wise entitled. One of the 
first acts of the Regents, therefore, was to put these 
assuming courtiers in their proper places. Seven of 
the principal offenders were consequently put on their 
trial, with the result that three were transported to 
the Amur, there to act as slaves, and four others 
were severely bastinadoed. These salutary lessons 
brought these pests of the palace to their bearings. 

26 



386 THE CLOSE OF t'UNGCHIH's REIGN 

To those on the spot who had followed the course 
of current events in China it was obvious that, since 
the conclusion of the treaty, there had been rather 
a decrease than an increase in the friendly feeling 
towards foreigners on the part of the officials. In 
fact, since the establishment of the. legations at 
Peking there had been a marked change in a hostile 
direction, and though the Chinese Goverrmient pro- 
fessed friendly feelings towards the Treaty Powers, 
there were not lacking signs that there was a desire 
on the part of even the most highly placed officials to 
restrict the provisions of the treaty so far as possible. 
Before the death of T'ungchih, it had been arranged 
that the Viceroy of India should send an expedition 
via Bhamo, in Burma, into Yunnan, for the purpose 
of opening commercial relations with that district. 
In December, 1874, the members of the mission 
arrived at Mandalay, and as soon as their arrange- 
ments were complete, started for Bhamo. To further 
the success of the undertaking it was determined to 
send Mr. Margary, of the Chinese Consular Service, 
who besides being a good Chinese scholar was a 
thoroughly capable man, to meet the expedition at 
Bhamo. On his way from Shanghai to the western 
frontier he met with every civility from the local 
mandarins, and eventually joined hands with Colonel 
Browne at Bhamo, on January 26, 1875. After 
some delay, during which reports had reached Bhamo 
that a Chinese force was collecting in the mountain 
passes to bar the passage of the expedition. Colonel 
Browne's party started eastward. By the light of his 
experience en route from Shanghai, Mr. Margary con- 



THE MURDER OF MARGARY 387 

sidered the rumour of opposition to be unworthy of 
credit, and with the consent of Colonel Browne, went 
ahead of the expedition to inquire exactly into the 
condition of affairs. On the 19th of February he 
arrived without difficulty at Manwyne, a town within 
the Chinese frontier, where he was hospitably received 
by the officials. On the following day he was invited 
to visit a mineral spring in the neighbourhood, and 
while on this excursion he was savagely assaulted 
and murdered. At the same time a Chinese force 
attacked Colonel Browne's party. These assailants 
were beaten off without much difficulty, but the 
murder of Margary, and the hostile attitude of the 
people, determined Colonel Browne to give up any 
thought of proceeding further, and he returned to 
BhamOo 

So soon as the news of this outrage reached Peking, 
Sir Thomas Wade made strong remonstrances at the 
Tsungli Yamen, and insisted that a joint Commission 
of English and Chinese officials should proceed to the 
spot to investigate the circumstances of the murder. 
But the Tsungli Yamen was in a more than usually 
obstructive mood, and for months Sir Thomas Wade's 
demands were met with consistent prevarications and 
delay. When no unemployed subterfuge for shelving 
the question at issue remained to them, they, in quite 
their approved manner, named a Taot'ai of inferior 
position as the colleague of Mr. Grosvenor, a secretary 
of Legation, in the commission of inquiry. Sir 
Thomas Wade refused to accept this appointment 
on the ground of the comparatively mean rank of 
the officer nominated, and finally induced Prince 



388 THE CLOSE OF T'UNGCHIH's REIGN 

Kung and his colleagues to appoint in his stead Li 
Hanchang, the Viceroy of the two Hu Provinces. 
This was only the preliminary difficulty to be over- 
come, for Li, imitating the conduct of his superiors, 
required two months to make his preparation for 
the journey. But everything must come to an end, 
even a Chinaman's delays, and eventually the 
Commission arrived at Manwyne and opened pro- 
ceedings. 

Meanwhile Sir Thomas Wade put forward seven 
demands to the Chinese Government, which he 
considered should be satisfied before there could be 
any reasonable possibility of bringing the matter to 
a satisfactory conclusion. The first of these had 
reference to improving the condition of diplomatic 
intercourse at Peking ; the second to the enlarge- 
ment of trading facilities ; the third to the provision 
of a sufficient escort to Mr. Grosvenor ; the fourth to 
the promise of an escort for another mission from 
India ; the fifth to requiring the Viceroy Ts'en to 
state how it happened that nearly six months after 
the murder of Margary no definite information con- 
cerning it had reached the Yamen ; the sixth to 
insisting that a minister should be sent to England 
to express the regret of the Chinese Government at 
the outrage ; and the seventh to demanding that the 
decree, directing the appointment of this minister to 
England, should be published in the Peking Gazette. 
To the first of these the Tsungli Yamen returned a 
characteristic answer. The ministers stated it was not 
customary for Chinese officials who were not charged 
with the management of foreign affairs to hold inter- 



AFFAIRS IN YUNNAN 389 

course with foreigners, " and it consequently behoves 
them," they added, " not to be in relations with the 
foreign representatives at Peking." They declined 
also to send a mission of apology, and added, " that 
it was not open to the servants of His Majesty the 
Emperor to make suggestions regarding his decrees." 
At this time Sir Thomas Wade was at Tientsin and 
had used Li Hungchang as an intermediary with the 
Government. The course which the proceedings now 
took, however, was so eminently unsatisfactory that 
he had made up his mind to return to Peking, and 
was on the point of departure, when the following 
laconic Imperial Decree was brought to his notice. 
" Let Li Hungchang and Ting Jihch'ang negotiate 
respecting the Margary affair with the British 
Minister, Mr. Wade at Tientsin." This edict 
appeared to constitute Li a plenipotentiary, and 
Sir Thomas Wade was, therefore, not unnaturally 
surprised when the Tsungli Yamen subsequently 
declined to endorse certain concessions made by 
their representative, and further announced at the 
same time " that it did not follow that what his 
Excellency Li might guarantee at Tientsin should 
be given effect to at Peking." 

The position of affairs in Yunnan was in every way 
as unsatisfactory as the course of the negotiations at 
Peking. Every obstacle was put in the way of the 
English Commissioner, and it was rendered quite 
impossible for him to arrive at the true conclusion of 
the matter by the withholding of much important 
evidence, and by the obtrusion of other so-called 
testimony which was absolutely valueless. It was 



390 THE CLOSE OF 'fUNGCHIH's REIGN 

plainly the intention of the supreme authorities to 
shelter the Viceroy Ts'en from all blame in the 
matter. This man's record was bad, and was blood- 
stained with every species of cruelty. During the 
suppression of the Mohammedan rebellion in the 
province he had sent to the execution ground 
hecatombs of victims, and in the opinion of all 
unprejudiced observers, it was plain that in this 
case he was primarily responsible for the murder. 
But it was impossible to get any witnesses to give 
evidence against him. Men who were in close 
relations with him professed to know nothing of 
his attitude in the matter, while at the same time 
they gave voluble testimony against a number of 
men of a border tribe, who were as far from their 
cognisance as Ts'en was near. Of only one official 
had they a word of disparagement to say. This was 
Colonel Li (Li Sieht'ai) who had begun life as a 
brigand, who had then turned rebel, and who had 
eventually transferred his valuable services to the 
provincial authorities. By all accounts this was 
the man who led the troops which opposed Colonel 
Browne's party. 

So thoroughly unsatisfactory were the results thus 
obtained, that Sir Thomas Wade refrained to press 
for the punishment of the accused, and finally despair- 
ing of arriving at a satisfactory arrangement with so 
tortuously minded a Government as that at Peking, 
hauled down his flag, and took ship for Shanghai. This 
step seriously alarmed the Tsungli Yamen, and after 
some negotiations Sir Thomas Wade agreed to meet 
Li Hungchang at Chifu (Chefoo) to discuss the terms 



A CHINESE MINISTER AT ST. JAMES's 39 1 

of a settlement. The result of the discussions which 
ensued was the Chifu Convention, which after having 
been unconfirmed for twelve years was at Jast 
ratified. 

One result of these long-drawn-out negotiations 
was that a permanent Chinese Minister was sent to 
the Court of St. James's. The choice of the first 
Envoy Plenipotentiary was an eminently fortunate 
one. Kwo Sungtao had had relations with foreigners 
in China, and was possessed of a conciliatory and 
courteous demeanour. As Mr. Gladstone once said 
of him, " he was the most genial Oriental whom he 
had ever met," and during his tenure of the Lega- 
tion in Portland Place, international matters went 
smoothly and well. While the foreign relations of 
the Empire had thus been disturbed, the attention of 
both officials and people at Peking had been absorbed 
by the details of the funerals of the late Emperor 
and Empress. Vast preparations were made for the 
august ceremony, and it was determined that both 
the young Emperor and the Dowager Empresses 
should follow the cortege to the Imperial mausolea in 
the eastern mountains. The sudden and unaccounted 
for death of Ahluta had agitated the Pekingese not a 
little, and one censor, more bold than the rest, took 
upon himself to suggest that an extra title of honour 
should be conferred upon her late Majesty in com- 
men:ioration of her many virtues. This was regarded 
as an implied censure by the Dowager Empresses, who 
issued an angry decree in response declaring the 
suggestion to be absurd, and ordering the unfortunate 
censor to be severely punished. On the i6th of 



392 THE CLOSE OF T^UNGCHIH's REIGN 

October, 1875, the funeral cortege left Peking, and on 
the 25th the Emperor returned to his capital. More 
than usual magnificence was lavished on the proces- 
sion and accompanying ceremonies. The coffins 
were each carried by a hundred and twenty-eight 
bearers, who were relieved sixty times during the 
day; and the cost incurred amounted to 189,000 
taels. 

These Imperial dead were scarcely laid to rest in 
the costly tombs raised to their memory, when their 
unhappy country, which was just recovering from the 
effects of wars and disturbances, was afiflicted with 
one of the most severe famines which have been 
known in the recent history of the world. Over a 
large portion of the north of China, consisting of an 
area as large as France, there lies a deep deposit of 
the geological formation known as Loess. This 
formation consists of a light friable soil, and covers 
the country to the depth of a hundred feet or more, 
levelling up the valleys and bringing low the hills. 
In favourable seasons when rains are frequent and 
temperate, the crops grown on the loess are full and 
generous. It is only necessary for the farmer to 
scratch the surface and sow his seed. Manure is 
unnecessary, and the usual succession of rich crops 
which are commonly yielded has earned for the 
district the name of the " Garden of China." But all 
this fertihty depends on the fall of sufficient rain and 
snow. In seasons when the clouds refuse their 
moisture, the winds which prevail blow away the 
surface soil, and leave the seed grain exposed to the 
desiccating influences of the sun and wind. It is 



A FAMINE 



393 



these conditions which afford a substantial reason 
for the prayers which are offered up by the Emperor 
in person, for rain and snow in seasons of summer 
drought and when the winter coating of snow is 
persistently withheld. 

During the years 1874-75 there had been a 
marked deficiency of moisture, a want which was 




A HOUSE IN SHANCl 



further intensified in the following year, and which 
ultimately ended in rendering absolutely sterile the 
seed sown by the farmers. The results were dis- 
astrous in the extreme. With such imperfect means 
of communication as the Chinese possess, it is im- 
possible to supply the deficiencies of one district by 
the superfluities of others with sufficient speed to 



394 I'HE. FIRST YEARS OF K WANG HSU 

prevent the occurrence of famine. Over the four 
provinces of Chlhh, ShansI, Honan, and Kansu a 
dire scarcity prevailed, and though every effort was 
made, both by foreigners and natives, to bring aid to 
the starving people, upwards of nine million perished 
before succeeding crops supplied food for the sur- 
vivors. In this emergency LI Hungchang succeeded 
In collecting as much as 289,394 taels, and a foreign 
relief committee at Shanghai was able to hand over 
204,560 taels to provide grain for the unfortunate 
sufferers. It Is Illustrative of the deeply grained 
dishonesty which pervades China that, even In the 
presence of such a fearful calamity, the peculating 
tendencies of native officials remained too strong to 
be overcome. In these circumstances LI Hungchang 
set a worthy example, and reported a number of his 
subordinates who had been taken red-handed In 
Intercepting the monies subscribed for the purchase 
of grain. These men were severely punished, and it 
Is a pleasure to know that one agent, who had mixed 
alum with the flour which he distributed in such 
proportions as to make It uneatable, met with ex- 
emplary punishment. 

LI, who has always had an eye for business profits, 
made large use of the vessels of the China Merchant 
Steam Navigation Company, of which he was the 
promoter, for the conveyance of the grain to the 
famine districts, and the result was undoubtedly 
satisfactory. But the bad roads and imperfect con- 
veyances made the transport of the grain from the 
ports to the inland localities a matter of serious 
difficulty. The prominence which was thus given to 



THE WUSUNG RAILWAY 395 

the faulty native means of intercommunication, 
brought once more to the front the question of 
introducing railways into the country. Already a 
small company of foreign merchants had, with the 
permission of the Viceroy of the two Kiang pro- 
vinces, constructed a line from Shanghai to Wusung, 
at the mouth of the river, a distance of about twelve 
miles. For a time all things went smoothly with the 
new venture. The line was popular with the people, 
who crowded the carriages to such an extent that 
some would-be passengers were left behind on almost 
every railway platform. But though it quickly secured 
the favour of the people, its success was gall and 
wormwood to the Literati, to whom any new foreign 
innovation is anathema. Confucius laid it down that 
his countrymen should not accept any new devices 
from abroad, and with curious pertinacity the students 
of what is known as the Confucian literature have 
steadily adhered to his advice. Life is not counted 
as being of much value in China, and when it became 
known that it would be a convenience to the official 
classes if a man were run over and killed, the event 
at once took place. This supplied the well-known 
Chinese device in such cases of a demand of a life for 
a life. A reference to the Consular Court naturally 
disposed of this preposterous proposition. Another 
means had therefore to be employed to arrive at the 
same end. Nothing is easier than to get up a riot in 
China, and it soon became evident that the appeal of 
the Literati to the people would meet with its usual 
success. So serious did affairs become under the 
influence of these mischief-makers, that the Viceroy 



39^ THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSO 

was obliged to intervene, and the matter was referred 
for decision to Sir Thomas Wade and Li Hungchang, 
who at the time were negotiating the Chifu Conven- 
tion. 

Li disclaimed all administrative power in the 
matter, and, in face of the opposition which had been 
roused, Sir Thomas Wade recommended that the 
trains should cease to run until a decision should be 
arrived at. Events in which foreigners were impli- 
cated had in those days a tendency to develop in 
one direction. This was no exception to the rule, 
and after much discussion, it was agreed that the 
Chinese should become owners of the railway by 
purchase. This sealed its fate, the rails were at once 
ruthlessly torn up, and were exported to the Island 
of Formosa, where they were allowed to rot on the 
sea shore. The practical utility of railways is so 
palpable that Li, in common with all men of intelli- 
gence, has always fully recognised their advantage, 
and being at the time interested in the development 
of some coal mines within his jurisdiction, he proposed 
to make a line to connect these pits with Tientsin 
and Taku. The district through which this line was 
to run was sparsely inhabited, and was entirely free 
from the presence of obstructive scholars. Li's influ- 
ence, however, was sufficient to have overcome any 
opposition which might have existed, but as none 
appeared, no difficulty arose in the construction of the 
line which still carries coal between K'aip'ing and the 
sea, to the infinite advantage of the province. The 
object lesson taught by this railroad has not been 
lost on the natives of the locality, and at the present 



ANOTHER KOREAN DIFFICULTY 



397 



moment the only lines which exist in the Empire — 
one from Taku to Peking, and the other a continuation 
of K'aip'ing line to Shanhaikwan — are in this im- 



mediate neighbourhood. 



In so vast an Empire as China, with so many feu- 
datory states owing allegiance to her, it can seldom 
be that complete peace reigns within her territories. 




A ROADWAY SCENE IN KOREA. 

A rebellion which broke out in Annan at this time 
was put down after some difficulty with the assistance 
of Chinese troops, and later the Court of Peking was 
disturbed by the news of a serious outbreak in Korea. 
Japan had already opened diplomatic intercourse 
with that country, and had claimed, as she always 
had done, suzerainty over it. At this time, as has 



398 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 

not uncommonly happened in the annals of that un- 
happy country, Korea was a house divided against 
itself. The King who still reigns is a well-meaning 
man, but without sufficient character to give effect to 
his good intentions in the face of opposition. He 
also suffered under the disadvantage of having 
witnessed during a long minority his father rule, or 
rather misrule, in the country. This man's external 
policy had been consistently anti-foreign. He had 
successfully opposed attempts made by French and 
American expeditions to enter the country, and when 
at length he handed over the reins of power to his 
son, he attempted to direct his successor's policy on 
the lines which he himself had followed. Finding, 
however, that his son was unwilling to accept his 
guidance in these matters, he used all his arts of 
intrigue to carry his points. He had bitterly opposed 
the Japanese Treaty, and finding the King obdurate 
on the question, he determined to effect by violence 
that which he could not gain by argument. At his 
instigation an attack was made on the Japanese 
Legation at Seoul, and so fierce was the assault that 
the Japanese after defending the building so long as 
it was tenable, sallied out against the mob, and fought 
their way to the sea coast, where they found shelter 
and protection on board a British gunboat. The ex- 
Regent T'aiwen Kun was now supreme. The young 
King was made a prisoner, and the Queen was only 
saved from assassination by the devotion of one of 
her ladies who met death in her stead. On receipt 
of the news of this outrage Li Hungchang, who was 
ordered by an Imperial edict to take the matter in 



THE KOREAN REGENT KIDNAPPED 



399 



hand, despatched an official named Ma with a fleet 
of ironclads to suppress the riots, while at the same 
time the Japanese Government re-established their 
Legation with the support of a strong escort. 

It was plain to Li, and to his lieutenant Ma, that 
so long as the ex-Regent was at liberty to plot and 
intrigue, peace was impossible. They determined 




A KOREAN SEDAN-CHAIR. 



therefore, that it was for the good of the country that 
he should be deported for a while. The kidnapping 
of officials in such circumstances is not an unusual 
practice in the East, and Ma was only acting after 
the manner of his countrymen when, having invited 
the T'aiwen Kun to an entertainment on board his 
ship, he steamed off to China with his unsuspecting 



400 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSO 

visitor. On the arrival of this Korean plotter on 
Chinese soil an Imperial edict was issued ordering 
that he should, for the remainder of his life, " live at 
peace at Paoting Fu in Chihli. . . . Let the Governor- 
General of Chihli," so ran on the document, " continue 
bountifully to afford him such support as his rank 
demands, and strictly keep watch over him, that thus 
a cause of trouble and calamity to Korea may be 
removed, and the breach of the laws of kindred 
towards the prince of that kingdom be healed." 

Meanwhile Japan had made demands for com- 
pensation for the insult offered to her flag in the 
attack on the Legation at Seoul. Five hundred 
thousand dollars were claimed as an indemnity for 
the cost of the expedition ; a new treaty port was 
insisted on ; and it was required that a mission of 
apology be sent to Japan to satisfy the amour 
propre of the Mikado's Government. Being abso- 
lutely powerless to refuse consent to these, or any 
other conditions, the Korean Government readily 
yielded all that was asked. 

For some time Li Hungchang and those who acted 
with him had observed with growing anxiety the 
advances which Japan had been making in the equip- 
ment of her army and navy, and in 1882 a secret 
memorial was presented to the Throne by Chang 
Peilun, a man who has since become notorious in 
many ways, and who further rejoices in the position 
of son-in-law to Li Hungchang, detailing the reforms 
which were being introduced into the Japanese army, 
and urging that it was the duty of " our Empire to 
check in time threatening evil from Japan, and to 



MILITARY REFORM 4OI 

establish definitely the supremacy of China over its 
neighbour." Chang was careful, however, to explain 
that an invasion of Japan would, in existing circum- 
stances, be a hazardous undertaking, and he very 
reasonably advocated the necessity of adding strength 
to the forces and fortifications of the Empire. Li, to 
whom this and other memorials of a similar kind 
were referred, advised caution, as was his wont, and 
summed up his recommendations in these words : 
" It is above all things necessary to strengthen our 
country's defences, to organise a powerful navy, and 
not to undertake aggressive steps against Japan in 
too great a hurry." 

We have seen the miserable figure which the 
Ch'nese forces cut in their late encounter with 
Japan, and if it is possible to imagine a greater 
disproportion of strength than was then displayed, 
it would have been found at the time of which we 
speak. For years the Japanese had been organising 
their army on the European model, and had armed 
their troops with the newest weapons invented at 
Elswick and by Krupp ; while the Chinese soldiers, 
with the exception of a small body enlisted by Li, 
were still trusting in their bows and arrows and in 
the scarcely more effective gingalls. In accordance 
with Li's advice the trial of strength was postponed, 
and if his subsequent counsel had been followed the 
battles of 1894 and 1895 would never have been 
fought. 

But though the Chinese Government were success- 
ful in avoiding a war with Japan, they were unable 
to escape complications which ended in the outbreak 

27 



402 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU. 

of hostilities with France in connection with affairs 
in Tongking. For many years the French Govern- 
ment had had relations with Annam, which, however, 
had never been carried on in any other than an 
intermittent fashion in accordance with the changes 
and chances of home politics. French missionaries 
had with indefatigable zeal attempted to introduce 
the knowledge of Christianity among the Annamese, 
and consequent persecutions had from time to time 
broken out which had not unfrequently ended in the 
massacre of the foreign priests. In this desultory 
and unsatisfactory manner relations were maintained 
until 1858, when, in consequence of the refusal of the 
King to carry out the terms of a treaty negotiated so 
far back as 1787, the French fleet destroyed the forts 
of Tourane and captured the town of Saigon. At 
this last-named city they established themselves, and 
when, after the war of 1 870, the enthusiasm for a 
Colonial Empire became so pronounced in France, 
they used it as a base from which to attempt to 
extend their influence over the neighbouring pro- 
vince of Tongking. One or two expeditions, which 
were rather of the nature of fillibustering adventures, 
were sent against Hanoi, the capital of the province, 
and gained temporary success. Annam, including 
Tongking, had for centuries been a feudatory state 
of China, and had acknowledged fealty by despatch- 
ing at regular intervals tributary missions to Peking. 
As in duty bound, the King on this occasion reported 
tc his liege lord the efforts which the French were 
making to gain possession of his northern province, 
and rather than risk a rupture Li Hungchang, as the 



THE FRENCH IN TONGKING 403 

Chinese representative, agreed in response to hand 
over to France that portion of the country which 
was south of the Songkoi River. We have already 
seen that Li's recommendations were not always 
accepted at Peking, and on this occasion, both in 
that capital and in Paris, the conditions proposed 
were peremptorily rejected. For ten years matters 
remained in this unsatisfactory condition ; the French 
being ever aggressive and the Annamese doing their 
utmost by force and by intrigue to oppose the 
advance of the invaders. At length, in 1884, the 
important towns of Sontay and Bacninh were 
threatened by French armies. The garrisons of 
these cities were mainly composed of Chinese troops, 
and the Marquis Tseng, who represented China at 
Paris at the time, was instructed to inform the 
French Government that China would regard an 
attack on those positions as an act of war. 

This threat, however, proved to be utterly un- 
availing, and, in defiance of the Marquis's warn- 
ing, the two cities were attacked and occupied 
by the French. It has never been the practice 
of the Chinese Government, until the outbreak 
of the recent war with Japan, to make a formal 
declaration of war, and as the French saw no 
necessity for going through that formality, the two 
countries, while contending in the field, remained 
diplomatically at peace. In Peking a strong party, 
headed by Li Hungchang, were desirous of coming 
to terms with the enemy while they were in the way 
with him, and the Dowager Empresses took occasion 
to emphasise their sympathy with the peace party by 



404 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSO. 

issuing a decree depriving " Prince Kung and several 
other ministers of all their offices, and imposing 
condign punishment upon all who were responsible 
for the failure in Tongking." In these circumstances 
Mr. Detring, of the China Customs Service, was en- 
couraged to suggest the opening of negotiations 
between Captain Fournier, of the French Navy, and 
Li Hungchang. Both parties being favourably dis- 
posed towards the conclusion of peace, terms were 
readily arrived at, and a convention was eventually 
signed between the two plenipotentiaries. By this 
instrument it was agreed that France should respect 
and, in case of need, protect the southern frontier of 
China, which separates that country from Tongking, 
and at the same time China undertook to withdraw 
at once all her troops from Tongking. 

Unfortunately for the permanence of the peace 
proposed by this treaty, the plenipotentiaries had 
omitted to name the date at which the Chinese 
troops were to be withdrawn, and, as it afterwards 
turned out, the two contracting parties held different 
views on this very important subject. Li was under 
the impression that it had been arranged that the 
movement should take place at the end of three 
months ; Fournier, on the other band, believed that 
three weeks was the limit allowed. Neither date, 
however, seems to have been mentioned to Colonel 
Dugenne, the commander of the troops in the neigh- 
bourhood of Langson, when notice was sent him of 
the conclusion of peace. With the impatience of a 
new possessor, therefore, he marched towards the 
town, and on arriving at a defile some distance from 



DEFEAT OF THE FRENCH 405 

the city he was met by a considerable Chinese force 
drawn up to oppose his advance. When he de- 
manded a passage through the Hnes of this hostile 
array, three mandarins came forward, and, explain- 
ing that they had had no intimation of the suspension 
of hostilities, demanded time that they might com- 
municate with the commanding officer at Langson. 
Dugenne interned these men as hostages, and then 
professed his willingness to wait for the required 
reference. By some misadventure the Zephyrs, or 
criminal corps of the army, opened fire upon the 
Chinese, and brought about an engagement. Two 
of the hostages, perceiving the mistake, attempted 
to ride back to their army to stop the fighting. 
Their intention, however, being misunderstood, they 
were both shot, while the third met the same fate 
by the discharge of a pistol. The action now 
became general, and the French were completely 
defeated. Their losses were heavy both in men and 
in baggage, and the troops would have been entirely 
overwhelmed had it not been for the gallant action 
of a body of Chasseurs d'Afrique, who checked the 
pursuing Chinamen. 

This misadventure gave rise to mutual recrimina- 
tions between the two negotiators of the Convention. 
Captain Fournier averred that he had agreed with 
Li as to the dates on which the fortresses were to 
be given up, while Li asserted that when he pro- 
tested against the impossibly short time named, 
Captain Fournier had run his pen through the 
clauses in dirpute. In defence of his conduct 
Captain Fournier wrote to Monsieur Ferry affirm- 



406 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSt). 

ing upon his honour that he had neither cancelled 
nor evaded any of the dates and stipulations of the 
note handed to Li Hungchang. In opposition to 
this very categorical statement, Ma, the captor of the 
Taiwen Kun of Korea, and Lo Fenglu, the present 
Minister at our Court, signed a letter addressed to 
the North China Herald, in which they stated that 
they "saw with their own eyes Captain Fournier 
with his own hand make the said erasures and put 
his initials thereto." 

After these events peace became impossible, and 
both in Tongking and Formosa the French again 
began operations. In the former province General 
Negrier took the field, and with some difficulty 
captured the stronghold of Langson (February 13, 
1885), while Admiral Courbet attacked, though un- 
successfully, Kelung, on the northern coast of 
Formosa. Finding his efforts there to be unavail- 
ing the admiral steamed across to Foochow. Of 
this intended movement the Chinese had notice, but 
Chang P'eilun, of whom mention has already been 
made, and who was commanding at Foochow at the 
time, entirely disregarded the intimation. With a 
certain disingenuousness Admiral Courbet, on the 
plea that war had not been declared, steamed by the 
forts at the mouth of the Min river, and anchored 
among the Chinese fleet in rear of the defences. 
Secure in his position, Courbet demanded the imme- 
diate surrender of the fleet and forts, and on this 
being refused, opened fire on the Chinese ships as 
they lay at anchor. In seven minutes the destruc- 
tion of the enemy's vessels was complete, and the 



DESTRUCTION OF THE CHINESE FLEET 407 

harbour was full of wreckage and drowning sailors. 
Between the natives of the provinces of Kwangtung 
and Fuhkien there has always been a standing feud, 
and the horrors of the situation were increased on 
this occasion by the fact that as the Kwangtung 
sailors scrambled up to the shore they were mur- 
dered by their Fuhkien countrymen. So complete 
was the disaster that it might fairly be considered 
impossible that even a Chinaman could have de- 
scribed it otherwise than as a defeat. But Chang 
P'eilun was equal to the occasion, and with splendid 
mendacity reported to the throne that he had gained 
a complete victory over the French, and had sunk 
several of their ships. The facts, however, which 
immediately transpired were too plain to make any 
such statement credible, and Chang P'eilun escaped 
execution by accepting transportation to the frontier. 
Being a protege of Li Hungchang, his exile was only 
temporary, and before long he returned to marry Li's 
daughter, and to take an active part in the manage- 
ment of his patron's concerns. 

After his exploit in the Foochow harbour Admiral 
Courbet, after having made five unsuccessful attacks 
on the forts near Kelung, at length succeeded in 
taking them (March, 1885), and further occupied the 
Pescadores. In Tongking, however, the French cause 
was not so successful. A system of guerilla warfare, 
while it failed to bring glory to the Tricolour, had an 
exhausting effect on the troops, and it was found 
necessary in April to evacuate Langson. Both sides 
were now heartily tired of the war, and the Tsungli 
Yamen was relieved to hear from Sir Robert Hart 



y 



4o8 



THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSV. 



that the negotiations which they had authorised him 
to carry on with M. Billot in Paris had been brought 
to a successful issue. The announcement of this 
welcome conclusion of peace was made by Sir Robert 
Hart in an enigmatic fashion which is so much 
affected by the Chinese. Sir Robert called one day 
at the Tsungli Yamen, and, addressing the ministers, 
said : " Nine months ago you authorised me to open 




INTERIOR OF THE TSUNGLI YAMEN, PEKING, 



negotiations for peace, and now " " The baby is 

born," said the ministers before he could proceed 
further. " Yes," said Sir Robert, " the preliminaries 
of peace are arranged." Congratulations followed, 
and it was agreed that the details of the treaty 
should be left to the consideration of Li Hungchang 
and M. Patenotre, the French Minister at Peking. 
On the 9th of June, 1885, the treaty was signed by 



THE CONCLUSION OF PEACE 4O9 

these plenipotentiaries, and it is eminently confirma- 
tory ot Li's prescience that after a year's conflict, 
which had cost his country 60,000,000 taels and the 
loss of the Foochow fleet, the Chinese Government 
had been willing to accept terms almost identical 
with those which he had arranged with Fournier in 
the preceding year. 

Meanwhile disturbances had again broken out in 
Korea. Notwithstanding the Imperial assertion that 
the transportation of the Taiwen Kun was to be for 
life, he was, in a moment of weakness, allowed to 
return to his native country. The result of this 
manumission was disastrous. He found on his 
return to his familiar haunts that the King had 
in his absence introduced extensive reforms, and 
amongst others a postal system modelled on Euro- 
pean lines. To this and all other innovations he 
was, as ever, determined to offer strenuous opposi- 
tion, and, by skilful intrigue, he so contrived that on 
the occasion of a dinner given to celebrate the 
inauguration of the new post office, a band of 
rebels was introduced into the banqueting-hall, who 
attempted to lay violent hands on the King. For 
some days fighting in the capital continued between 
the two contending parties, the reformers and the 
reactionists, and in the course of the hostilities a 
determined attack was made on the Japanese Lega- 
tion, when for the second time the minister and his 
staff had to fight their way to the coast. In response 
to this outrage, and in defence of their national 
honour, the Japanese landed a force at Chemulpo, 
the port of Seoul ; while at the same time a Chinese 



410 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSO. 

army entered the Korean capital. The situation of 
1882 was thus repeated, and, as on that occasion, it 
seemed only too probable that the two protecting 
powers would be drawn into a war. Happily the 
danger was averted, and negotiations between the 
two states were entered upon at Tientsin, Count Ito 
representing Japan and Li Hungchang China. 

After considerable discussion a convention was 
signed by which it was agreed that both China and 
Japan should withdraw their troops from Korea 
within four months of the date of the signature of 
the treaty ; that the King of Korea should be 
invited to instruct and drill a sufficient armed force 
to assure the public security of the kingdom ; and 
that "in case of any disturbance of a grave nature 
occurring in Korea, which may oblige the respective 
countries or either of them to send troops to Korea, 
it is hereby understood that they shall give, each to 
the other, previous notice in writing of their intention 
so to do, and that after the matter is settled they 
shall withdraw their troops and not further station 
them in the country." This last clause is worthy of 
attention, as it was the infringement of it, or alleged 
infringement of it, on the part of China, which led 
to the outbreak of the recent war with Japan. 

The war with France which had lately been brought 
to a close, and the threatened hostilities with Japan, 
awoke, for a moment, at Peking a desire to strengthen 
the forces of the country. Ships were added to the 
navy, and advice poured in from Censors and others 
as to the best means of protecting the Empire against 
foreign foes. A Board of Admiralty was instituted 



NA^AL ECCENTRICITIES 4I I 

of which Prince Ch'un, the father of the Emperor, 
was made first lord, and so seriously did he regard 
his position that in the summer of 1886 he took the 
unprecedented step of leaving the capital to inspect 
the fleet and arsenals at Tientsin and Port Arthur. 
Under this new naval administration Captain Lang, 
of the British navy, was appointed admiral of the 
northern fleet, which by that curious system of 
decentralisation which prevails in China was alone 
placed under the control of Prince Ch'un and his 
colleagues, the southern fleet, with its headquarters 
at Foochow, being administered by the local pro- 
vincial magnates. This curious arrangement led to 
some strange results in the recent war with Japan. 
At Wei-hai-wei, when the Chinese fleet surrendered, 
a ship of the southern squadron happened by chance 
to be amongst them. The captain of this vessel, not 
in the least understanding why he should be held a 
prisoner when his presence with the northern fleet 
had been the result of an accident, represented his 
case to the Japanese admiral, and requested that he 
and his ship should be released as otherwise he might 
fall under the censure of his superiors ! 

The year 1886 was a busy year in foreign politics, 
more especially so far as relations with Great Britain 
were concerned. At this time King Thebaw's mis- 
doings had led to our occupation of Upper Burma, a 
territory over which China claimed suzerain rights. 
With that tender regard for the feelings of the 
Emperor and his ministers which has always dis- 
tinguished our Foreign Oflice, it was agreed that if 
China would consent no longer to interfere in 



412 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHS'U. 

Burmese politics, the decennial tribute mission 
should continue to be despatched to Peking. The 
folly of this arrangement soon became apparent. 
Since 1842 our main endeavour in dealing with the 
Chinese had been to bring home to their conscious- 
ness the fact that as a nation we were to be treated 
on terms of perfect equality with themselves. At 
this eleventh hour, therefore, to proclaim ourselves 
tributary to Peking was one of those acts of folly 
which are to be accounted for only by presupposing 
on the part of the Foreign Office a complete ignor- 
ance of Asiatics and their modes of thought. With 
a return to a more reasonable mind the arrange- 
ment was discontinued. 

The latest outbreak in Korea, described above, had 
disquieted other countries besides China and Japan. 
The Russians protested that such disturbances, recurr- 
ing at such short intervals, presented a danger to the 
peace of their provinces across the frontier which was 
not to be endured, and there were not wanting the 
usual signs of a threatened move southwards on the 
part of the Colossus of the North. In these circum- 
stances our Admiralty determined, as a protective 
measure, to occupy Port Hamilton, an island off the 
southern coast of Korea. In obedience to the follow- 
ing laconic telegram " Occupy Port Hamilton, and 
report proceedings," Admiral Sir William Dowell 
hoisted the British flag on the island. This move 
aroused, as might have been expected, considerable 
Russian opposition, and the Czar's minister at Peking 
was instructed to warn the Chinese that if the 
occupation was persisted in, Russia would be com- 



RESTORATION OF PORT HAMILTON 413 

pelled to take possession of a similar foothold in self- 
defence. Happily under the influence of the Ito and 
Li Convention a more peaceful state of affairs had 
supervened in Korea, and the British Government 
felt justified, under the favourably altered circum- 
stances, in yielding the point. It was, however, laid 
down as a condition of the restoration of the island, 
that under no circumstances whatever should it at 
any time be handed over to any other foreign Power, 
and simultaneously the Chinese Government ex- 
tracted from the Russian minister a categorical 
undertaking that his country would not, under 
any circumstances, interfere with Korean territory. 
On February 27, 1887, the British flag ceased to fly 
over Port Hamilton. 

The year which followed was an uneventful one as 
far as foreign politics are concerned, but the internal 
affairs of the Empire gave plenty of occupation to 
the Emperor's ministers. The reforms in the army 
were still being carried on, although in the usual 
ineffective Oriental way. How deplorable was the 
condition of this branch of the service may be 
inferred from memorials presented to the Throne 
at this time. The Governor of Shensi proposed 
to inspect the troops of the province, who for 
thirty years had never presented themselves on the 
parade ground. The troops in the province of 
Yunnan were perhaps not quite in so parlous a 
condition. They were, however, mainly armed with 
bows and arrows, and the Governor with some show 
of reason reminded his Imperial master that though 
archery is a good gymnastic exercise, the weapons 



414 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU. 

with which battles are won are rifles and cannon, 
and he therefore proposed to arm his men, so far as 
possible, with these weapons. Doubtless the miser- 
able condition of the army is attributable to the fact 
that at earlier periods the enemies whom the Chinese 
have been accustomed to meet have been even worse 
armed and worse drilled than themselves. 

At the time of which we speak a war was being 
waged in Hainan against the aboriginal tribes who 
inhabit and disturb that island. After many engage- 
ments and a lengthened campaign, the Chinese 
general announced the suppression of the revolt 
and received from the Emperor characteristic 
rewards for his martial valour. His Majesty pre- 
sented him with a jade thumb-ring, a dagger with 
a jade handle, a pair of large pouches and a pair 
of small ones. An incidental reference in the 
general's despatch to the unhealthiness of the 
climate and the malarious evils arising from it 
awakened the sympathy of the Dowager Empress, 
who was good enough to present the army with ten 
boxes of P'ingan Tan, or " pills of peace and 
tranquillity." 

In the beginning of 1887 an announcement was 
made that that the young Emperor having now 
reached years of discretion, that is to say the 
ripe age of sixteen, he would accept the reins of 
power. But this apparently did not harmonise 
with the wishes of the "Son of Heaven." "When 
I heard of the decree," he wrote in his Edict in 
response, " I trembled as if I were in mid-ocean, not 
knowing where the land is. Her Majesty will, how- 



THE DOWAGER EMPRESS 415 

ever, continue to advise me for a few years longer in 
important affairs of State. I shall not dare to be 
indolent, and, in obedience to the Empress's com- 
mand, I have petitioned heaven, earth, and my 
ancestors, that I may assume the adminstration 
of the Government in person on the 15th day of 
the first moon in the thirteenth year of my reign. 
Guided by the counsel of her Majesty, everything 
will be done with care." As a matter of fact the 
Dowager Empress did not retire from the control of 
affairs until 1889, and even since then she has exer- 
cised considerable influence in the administration of 
the Empire. It is not to be wondered at that the 
Emperor desired to put off as long as possible the 
weight of government. The life of a " Son of 
Heaven " is certainly not to be envied. With rare 
exceptions he remains a State prisoner within the 
palace walls, and even on the Progresses which he is 
occasionally called upon to make, the heavy duties 
of his position are still constantly with him. Even 
at the time when the Dowager Empress shared his 
responsibilities, his duties were onerous, and from 
notices which appeared in the Peking Gazette some 
idea of his official thraldom can be gained. In 
March, 1887, he visited the tombs of his ancestors 
in the Western Hills, and each day at fixed hours 
batches of memorials were sent after him to occupy 
his leisure moments at the halting-places. On arriv- 
ing at the mausolea he performed at the tombs the 
sacrifices which were necessary for the repose of the 
dead, who, if his object were gained, would appear to 
have been the only ones benefited by the process. 



4l6 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSO. 

For weeks beforehand the people Hving on the high- 
way were charged with the duty of repairing the 
road and mending the bridges. This duty they, on 
this occasion, failed to perform to the complete satis- 
faction of the traveller, who made a formal complaint 
that he had observed wheel tracks on the roadway 
over which his chariot should have been the first to 
travel. 

It must always be a matter of wonder how the 
national accounts, being of an extremely fluctuating 
nature, can ever be made to balance. In the year of 
which we are speaking the Yellow River was more 
than usually capricious in its ebb and flow. On 
several occasions it burst its banks and flooded the 
country far and wide. As a natural consequence 
farms were desolated and whole villages were swept 
away. From people in such straits it was plainly 
impossible to expect payment of taxes, and neither 
from the provinces of Honan nor Shantung was a 
tithe of the usual revenue received. The currency 
also is of so variable a value that large losses are 
constantly incurred by the mints, and Kwanghsu's 
ministers had not only to bear the brunt of a mone- 
tary crisis in Peking, but had to meet the conse- 
quences of several financial panics in different parts 
of the Empire. At Foochow, as elsewhere, the local 
banks had issued paper currency far beyond the due 
proportion of reserve coin in their chests. The 
natural results followed, and as the banks closed 
their doors they were attacked by angry mobs who 
wrecked them utterly, and attempted, vainly, to 
recompense themselves by plunder for the losses 



AN IMPERIAL EXHORTATION 41/ 

they had sustained. In the midst of these money 
difficulties the Emperor, in a lofty manner, issued an 
edict calling upon his officials to exercise the 
strictest economy in the administration of the 
Empire, and warning the Court mandarins to avoid 
all unnecessary expenditure in the palace ceremonies, 
for, as he said, " the Court should stand forth as an 
example of frugality to the whole nation." 

At this time the war with France had given a great 
impetus to the extension of telegraphs throughout 
the Empire, and in 1887 the line was completed 
which connected Peking with the capital of Yunnan, 
the extreme south-westerly province in the Empire. 
The old-fashioned notion that the fengshui of the 
districts through which the wires passed would be 
affected by their presence had ceased to exist, and 
there were not wanting signs that the days of that 
venerable superstition were numbered. At Jehol in 
Mongolia large quarries were opened for Imperial 
purposes, and, to prevent all misunderstandings, an 
order was issued by Li Hungchang that no one should 
dare to suggest that the disturbance of the earth's 
surface would in any way affect the fengshui of the 
neighbourhood. In this he was implicitly obeyed, as 
he had also been in the case of the K'aip'ing railway, 
and the Emperor got his stone without arousing any 
of that opposition which twenty years ago would, 
under similar circumstances, have been rampant. 

Notwithstanding the Emperor's protest in favour 
of economy, the year 1887 was marked by the pre- 
paration of several magnificent Court ceremonies. 
Since the Emperor had been declared to be of age, 

28 



41 8 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 

it was necessary that he should think of taking to 
himself a consort, and under the direction of the 
Dowager Empress he arranged to espouse a young 
lady named Yehonala, the daughter of the Empress's 
brother, General Kweihsiang ; and after the manner 
of the country it was determined that he should also 
take to himself two concubines, who owned to the 
youthful ages of thirteen and fifteen. For rather 
more than a year the Emperor was left to enjoy 
the pleasures of anticipation, and it was not till 
March, 1889, that the Imperial wedding took place. 
The officials of the Astronomical Board chose, as was 
their duty, a day which was believed to augur well 
for the happiness of the young couple, but in a 
moment of carelessness announced that the usual 
preparatory worship would be offered two days 
before, instead of one day before, the ceremony. 
For this error they were roundly taken to task 
by the Dowager Empress, who, being a staunch 
ceremonialist, decreed that they should suffer severe 
penalities for their mistake. By an Imperial Edict 
the rites and ceremonies which were to be carefully 
observed consisted of seven parts. First came the 
sending of presents ; then the actual marriage ; 
next the joint worship of their ancestors by the 
Imperial pair ; the conferring a patent as Empress 
on the bride ; her presentation to the Dowager 
Empress ; the reception of felicitations ; and an 
Imperial banquet. 

Honours in commemoration of the event were 
bestowed on Sir Robert Hart and numberless other 
offi ials, while the carriers of the bride's sedan-chair 



THE EMPEROR S MARRIAGE 419 

and even the torchbearers who attended upon her 
received royal largess. With this final assumption of 
manhood the Emperor passed out of the leading 
strings by which the Empress Tzuhsi had so long 
directed his course, and one of the first of his new 
duties was to prepare a palace for the reception of 
the ex-Regent. The choice of his residence had, as 
we are told in the Peking Gazette, been a subject of 
long and anxious consideration to the Emperor, who, 
in well-rounded sentences, declared in a decree his 
anxiety to procure for her Majesty a place of rest 
and peace after the eighteen wearisome years of 
adminstration which had fallen to her lot. In an 
appreciative edict the Empress returned the com- 
pliments paid her by the Sovereign, and took the 
opportunity of giving utterance to the following 
excellent advice : " The Emperor is now advancing 
to manhood, and the greatest respect which he can 
pay to us will be to discipline his own body, to 
develop his mind, to pay unremitting attention 
to the administration of the Government, and 
to love his people." From all accounts the young 
Emperor has endeavoured to obey these wholesome 
admonitions, and from the records of his daily life 
there seems to be very little time left for the enjoy- 
ment of the pleasures of existence after he has 
shown his love for his people by attending to the 
adminstration of the Empire. The following pro- 
gramme of a by no means uncommon morning's 
work is enough to justify this assertion. At 2 a.m. 
he leaves the palace for the Temple of Earth, 
where he sacrifices to the gods of the five grains. 



420 



THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 



At 4 a.m. he returns to the palace, where he betakes 
of an early breakfast ; and then proceeds to the 
Temple of the God of Fire, where he burns incense, 




and, after having offered up the usual prayers, 
returns to the palace to receive the reports of his 
ministers and to discuss the affairs of the Empire. 



A GRACIOUS EDICT 421 

The years during which the Dowager Empress had 
held the reins of power had been full of difficulties 
and anxieties, and it says much for her ability that 
she was able to steer the ship of State in safety 
through the ruffled waters of the time. The assump- 
tion of power by Kwanghsu brought no relief to this 
strain. Local rebellions immediately broke out in 
the provinces of Yunnan and Hunan and among the 
bordering tribes of Lolos ; and though these were 
successfully suppressed, the peace of the country was 
for a time seriously disturbed. 

During the long minority of the Emperor the 
foreign ministers at Peking had been obliged to forego 
the right of audience. But, as in the case of 
T'ungchih, the time had now arrived when they might 
fairly ask to be received by the " Son of Heaven." 
Having, however, intimated their desire to appear in 
the Imperial presence they took no other step to 
accomplish their desire, and without further negotia- 
tions the following edict appeared in the Peking 
Gazette of the 12th of December, 1890: "Since the 
treaties have been made with the various nations 
letters and despatches under the seals of the Govern- 
ments have passed to and fro, making complimentary 
inquiries year by year without intermission. The 
harmony which has existed has become thus from 
time to time more and more secure. The ministers 
of the various Powers residing at Peking have abun- 
dantly shown their loyal desire to maintain peaceful 
relations and international friendship. This I cordially 
recognise, and I rejoice in it. In the first and second 
months of last year, when there were special reasons 



422 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 

for expressing national joy, I received a gracious 
decree (from the Empress Dowager) ordering the 
ministers of the Yamen for Foreign Affairs to enter- 
tain the ministers of foreign nations at a banquet. 
That occasion was a memorable and happy one. I 
have now been in charge of the Government for two 
years. The ministers of foreign Powers ought to be 
received by me at an audience, and I hereby decree 
that the audience to be held be in accordance with 
that of the twelfth year of the reign of T'ungchih 
(1873). It is also hereby decreed that a day will be 
fixed every year for an audience, in order to show my 
desire to treat with honour all the ministers of foreign 
Powers resident in Peking. . . . The ministers of the 
Vamen for Foreign Affairs are hereby ordered to 
prepare in the first month of the ensuing new year a 
memorial asking that the time for the audience may 
be fixed. On the next day the foreign ministers are 
to be received at a banquet at the Foreign Office. 
The same is to be done every year in the first month, 
and the rules will be the same on each occasion. 
New ministers coming will be received at this annual 
audience. At all times of national congratulation, 
when China and the foreign countries give suitable 
expression to their joy, the ministers of the Foreign 
Office are to present a memorial asking for the 
bestowal of a banquet to show the sincere and in- 
creasing desire of the Imperial Government for the 
maintenance of peace and the best possible relations 
between China and the foreign States." 

The fact that this decree was published spontane- 
ously, and that the terms in which it was dictated 








o 







CURRENT COIN. 



424 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 

evinced a desire for friendly relations, encouraged the 
foreign ministers to hope that a brighter day was 
dawning on their relations with the Imperial Govern- 
ment. These anticipations, however, were not destined 
to find fulfilment at once. The building named for 
the ceremony was the same hall dedicated to inferior 
uses as that in which T'ungchih received the diplomatic 
body in 1873, and in one respect an act was at this 
time imposed which formed a distinct relapse from 
the level reached in 1873. ^"^ that year the ministers 
placed their letters of credence with their own hands 
on the table in front of the Emperor's throne. Now 
they were expected to hand them to an attendant 
prince, who, in this respect, acted in their stead. 
Though this change may appear insignificant to 
Western minds, it meant much, and it was intended to 
mean much, to the native onlookers who crowded the 
outskirts of the hall in an inconvenient and especially 
indecorous manner. The Emperor's reply to the 
congratulations of his visitors was most cordial, and 
his manner was then, as it always has been since, as 
courteous as circumstances permitted. On the whole, 
however, the audience cannot be said to have come 
up to what might reasonably have been expected, 
and the ministers on reviewing their position came to 
the determination that in future they would rather 
forego the right of audience than present themselves 
again in the Tzu-kwang Ko. The result of this 
decision might have taught them the very useful 
lesson that if they had previously shown an equally 
firm front, they need never have submitted to the 
degradations to which they had been subjected. In 



THE AUDIENCE QUESTION SETTLED 425 

the following year both the Austrian Minister and, a 
little later, Mr. O'Connor, the British Representative, 
were received by the Emperor in the Cheng-Kwang 
Tien, a building which, though outside the palace, 
had never been used as a reception-hall for envoys 
from tributary States. 

But what diplomacy had failed to accomplish in 
this matter, political complications brought about 
without discussion. The war with Japan inclined 
the Chinese Government to seek for the countenance, 
if not the support, of the European Powers by 
granting timely concessions, and in November, 1894, 
the following edict appeared in the Peking Gazette : 
" On Monday last the Emperor gave audience in the 
Wenhwa Tien to the following ministers : American, 
Russian, English, French, Belgian, Swedish, and the 
Acting Minister for Spain." The hall here mentioned 
stands within the walls of the Imperial Palace, and 
thus for the first time an audience was granted in a 
manner which demonstrated the equality with China 
of the nations represented. Since then, however, 
events have marched apace, and foreigners, taking 
advantage of the weakness of the Empire, have 
occupied strategic positions which until now have 
been beyond the dreams of their ambition. The 
attitude of the Emperor towards foreign Sovereigns 
reflects this changed position of affairs, and we are 
now told (May, 1898) that Prince Henry of Germany 
was received by the Emperor standing, and was 
honoured by a return visit from the " Son of 
Heaven " ! 

It is necessary now, in order to preserve the general 



426 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 

chronology and sequence of events, to revert to the 
year 1887. For some time it had been felt by the 
less bigoted members of the Imperial Government 
that use should be made of European science to 
enable the authorities to place their country in a 
position of safety. As long ago as 1 866 Prince Kung 
and others had presented a memorial to the Throne 
recommending the study of mathematics for Chinese 
students, and advising the Emperor to found a col- 
lege at Peking where that and cognate sciences might 
be taught. The college was established and European 
professors were appointed. But this reform was in 
advance of the age, and failed of the success which 
it had been hoped it might achieve. Twenty-one 
years later a more practical step was taken in the 
same direction, and the Tsungli Yamen in 1887 
presented a united request to the Throne that mathe- 
matics should be included in the list of subjects 
required from students at the competitive examina- 
tions. The Imperial assent was given to this proposal, 
and with more or less cordiality, in accordance with 
the proclivities of the officials of each province, the 
new subject has been placed side by side with the 
" Book of Changes " and the " Sayings of Confucius." 
No doubt this innovation was eminently distasteful 
to the general body of Literati^ whose instincts and 
interests are bound up in the continuance of the 
existing condition of things. To these men any con- 
cession to foreigners, or any adoption of Western 
appliances, is hateful, and with one consent large 
bodies of them banded themselves together to oppose 
the foreign taint by every means in their power. 




A CHINESE PROFESSOR. 



428 THE FIRST YEARS OE KWANGHSU 

Of all the provinces in the Empire Hunan has, 
until within the last few months, shown the most 
determined and implacable distaste for everything 
European, and in 1891 there proceeded from this 
hotbed of reactionism a series of vile anti-foreign 
placards accusing the European missionaries of every 
crime which disgraces humanity. The prime mover 
in the publication of these gross libels was a certain 
Chow Han, who was of official rank and was pos- 
sessed of considerable scholarship. With the fiercest 
invective he described how missionaries gouged out 
the eyes of their converts, and cut out parts of their 
intestines for medicinal purposes, and how they led 
astray the unsuspecting natives by their vile arts and 
evil designs. These placards were profusely illus- 
trated, and every device was employed to cast obloquy 
both on the missionaries and on the Supreme Being 
whom they worshipped. It happens that the term 
which the Roman Catholics use for God, T'ienchu, or 
" Lord of Heaven," is almost identical in sound with 
words meaning the " Heavenly Pig," and it suited the 
fancy of these impious caricaturists to represent the 
Deity under this infamous disguise. An expression 
for " Foreigners," Yangjen, might, in the same way, be 
understood to mean " Goat Men," and this play on 
words was in the same way abundantly made use of 
by Chow Han and his confederates. On the basis of 
these slanders, rumours were circulated that children 
were being kidnapped and vivisected by the mission- 
aries, and, in consequence, as has always happened in 
China in similar circumstances, the people in their 
ignorance broke out into riot and disorder. In rapid 



RIOTS ON THE YANGTSZE 429 

succession the mob rose at Wuhu, Wuhsueh, Tanyang, 
Wusieh, Chingkwan, Yangwu, and Kiangyen. Chris- 
tian churches were demoHshed, the houses of the 
missionaries were wrecked and looted, and at Wuh- 
sueh two British subjects, one a missionary and one 
an officer of the Maritime Customs, were murdered. 
In accordance with the invariable precedent in such 
matters, the representations on the subject made by 
the British Minister to the Tsungli Yamen were met 
with evasive replies ; and the Chinese Minister at 
St. James's was even instructed to suggest to Lord 
Salisbury that he should check the zeal of Sir John 
Walsham in pursuing his inquiry into \ki^ fons et origo 
of the riots. So eminently unsatisfactory was the 
attitude of the Chinese Government throughout the 
investigation that the foreign ministers at Peking 
found themselves compelled to place on record " that 
no faith could be put in the assurances of the 
Chinese Government." To this grave assertion Sir 
John Walsham added, '' The charges (against the 
mandarins) remain unaltered, and the repeated asser- 
tions of Chinese agents in foreign countries that the 
Chinese Government has acted with good faith and 
energy can be disproved by facts, and are as plausible 
as the assurances that native officials might now be 
safely entrusted with the protection of foreigners." 

This being the attitude of the Tsungli Yamen, not 
much could be expected in the way of compensation 
for the outrages. After long and dreary negotiations 
certain monetary recompense was granted, but the 
only official who suffered punishment was the man 
who at the risk of his life saved English women and 



430 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 

children from the fury of the mob ! Meanwhile the 
prime mover in the whole matter, Chow Han, was 
allowed to remain at large, although the Yamen went 
through the form of holding an inquiry into his 
conduct. A commission was appointed to adjudicate 
upon the charges brought against him, and the result 
of the investigation amounted to the assertion that 
he was a wild, erratic creature whose actions were not 
to be regarded seriously. Without hesitation the 
Yamen accepted this view, and left the malefactor at 
liberty to work any further mischief which might be 
in his power. The one favourable feature in the 
episode was the edict issued by the Emperor in 
response to a memorial presented by the Yamen on 
the circumstances connected with the riots. This 
document ran as follows : — 

" The propagation of Christianity by foreigners is 
provided for by treaty, and Imperial decrees have 
been issued to the provincial authorities to protect 
the missionaries from time to time. . . . The doctrine 
of Christianity has for its purpose the teaching of 
men to be good. . . . Peace and quiet should reign 
among the Chinese and missionaries. There are, 
however, reckless fellows who fabricate stories which 
have no foundation in fact for the purpose of creating 
trouble. Villains of this class are not few in number, 
and are to be found everywhere. The local authori- 
ties must protect the lives and property of foreign 
merchants and missionaries and prevent bad 
characters from doing them injury. . . . Let this 
decree be universally promulgated for the informa- 
tion of the people." 



POLITICAL INSIXCERITY 43 1 

After the appearance of this edict matters quieted 
down for a time in the disturbed district, but a strong 
anti-foreign feeHng still existed, and two years later 
two Swedish missionaries were murdered at Sungpu, 
in circumstances which were especially brutal. But 
the same course of political events which opened the 
Imperial Palace to the foreign ministers produced 
a calm so far as Europeans were concerned in the 
provinces, and, though outwardly satisfactory, this 
peaceful situation was in one sense evidence of one 
of the worst features of the attitude of the Chinese 
towards foreigners. It has always been contended 
by those who understand the situation best, that as a 
rule the anti-foreign riots are made to order, and it is 
at least eminently noticeable that they never occur 
when it is to the interest of the Government that 
peace should reign. With the outbreak of the 
Japanese war it became the interest of the Chinese 
to seek in every possible way to conciliate the foreign 
Powers, and a mot cTordre, therefore, went forth that 
the elements of disorder were to remain quiescent. 
So long as the war lasted, outrages in China Proper 
ceased completely, and it was not until peace had 
been signed that mob law again prevailed in parts of 
the central provinces, more especially in Szech'uan. 
In the capital of this province every missionary 
establishment was razed to the ground, and nearly a 
hundred foreigners were compelled to take refuge in 
places of safety. A little later in the same year 
(1895) a peculiarly savage onslaught was made on 
the missionary settlement of Hwashan, in the pro- 
vince of Fuhkien. With the ordinary natives in the 



432 THE FIRST YEARS OF KWANGHSU 

neighbourhood the missionaries were on excellent 
terms, but it so happened that a local society of 
vegetarians, for some quite unknown reason, pro- 
fessed deadly enmity to the foreigners. This state 
of things was perfectly well known to the local 
authorities, who, however, took no steps to check 
the evil which they saw to be gathering about them. 
At early dawn one morning, without any immediate 
warning, a band of two or three hundred of these 
miscreants attacked the station, and succeeded in 
murdering ten foreigners and wounding others, 
besides destroying the mission premises. This out- 
rage was a shock to the sensibilities of Europe, and 
so strong were the diplomatic expressions used with 
regard to it, that the Chinese Government showed 
a somewhat more complacent demeanour than usual 
in the conduct of the subsequent inquiries. The 
recent murder of a German missionary in Shantung 
has been productive of a useful lesson. It has 
brought a comparatively new Power into the field, 
and has called forth action on the part of the 
German Government which is likely to bear good 
fruit in the future. As has so often been said, the 
Chinese will yield only to force, and it is by such 
measures alone as those now adopted in Shantung, 
that the lives and goods of Christian missionaries 
will continue to be preserved from harm. 



XIV 

THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

Korean politics have, as we have seen, constantly 
formed bones of contention between the Chinese 
and Japanese Governments. The country has been 
overrun at different periods by the troops of both 
nations, and with that curious elasticity of obliga- 
tions common to the extreme East the Korean 
Government has owned itself a feudatory at one 
and the same time of both China and Japan. It 
will be remembered that by the convention signed 
by Count Ito and Li Hungchang it was agreed that, 
in case circumstances arose which demanded the 
presence of the troops of either country in Korea, 
each should send notice to the other of her intention 
to land soldiers. In 1894 such a contingency arose. 
The Tong Hak, or followers of the Eastern Doctrine, 
rose in revolt primarily against the Roman Catholic 
converts, but also against the government of the 
country. A force sent against them from Seoul 
met with a serious reverse, and in his difficulty the 
King, in accordance with precedent, appealed to 
Peking for help. 

29 433 



434 THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

With the contemptuous disregard for international 
obligations which distinguishes the Chinese, they in 
response to the King's appeal landed troops in Korea 
without, as the Japanese aver, giving any notice of 
their intention so to do. As a protest against this 
step the Mikado's Government despatched a corps 
d'arinee in all haste to Korea, and thus once again 
the troops of the two states were brought face to face 
in a semi-hostile attitude. Neither, however, was 
inclined to fight, and the Japanese contented them- 
selves with advocating the introduction of reforms 
into the administration of the country. To this 
eminently .sensible course the Chinese took excep- 
tion, and warned the Japanese that all questions 
relating to the reformation of the country should 
be left in their hands. To this political snub the 
Japanese submitted, and even made no protest 
against a further preposterous demand that all 
men-of-war flying the Mikado's flag should leave 
the Chinese ports by the 20th of the July following. 
Though so far compliant, the Japanese warned their 
opponents that they should consider any further 
importation of troops into the country as an act of 
war. They were, however, too well versed in Chinese 
methods to accept blindly the assurances that were 
made them on this point, and took the reasonable 
precaution of sending three cruisers to the gulf of 
Pechihli to ensure the fulfilment of the under- 
standing. The event proved that this measure was 
justified, for on the morning of the 25th of July 
the Japanese squadron encountered a Chinese trans- 
port loaded with troops, and accompanied by two 



THE BATTLE OF AS AN 435 

men-of-war, making for the coast of Korea. There 
could only be one outcome of this breach of faith, 
and the cruisers on both sides cleared for action. 
In less than an hour one of the Chinese warships 
was disabled and beached, and the other steamed 
off, leaving the transport to be dealt with by the 
Japanese commander, who signalled to the captain 
to make for a Japanese port. To this summons 
the captain explained that he was unable to comply, 
owing to the attitude of the Chinese soldiers on 
board, who further prevented him from leaving the 
ship when he was subsequently warned to do so. 
In this deadlock the Japanese, after a brief interval, 
hoisted a red flag and poured a broadside into the 
transport. The scene which followed was one of 
helpless terror and alarm, and before any steps could 
be taken to save the life of a single person on board, 
the ship went down, carrying with it most of its 
passengers and crew. 

This act led to a declaration of war on both sides, 
and both Powers poured troops into Korea. The 
first battle was fought in the neighbourhood of Asan, 
a port in the south-west of the peninsula. A Chinese 
force occupied the town commanded by General 
Yeh, who no sooner learnt of the approach of the 
Japanese than he marched off with the bulk of his 
forces to Pingyang, a strongly fortified position to 
the north of the capital, leaving his rearguard to 
defend the city. The natural result followed. At 
the end of a brief skirmish the Japanese took 
possession of the place, and after having captured 
the Chinese stores and munitions of war, left a 



43^ THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

garrison in the forts and marched northwards in 
the pursuit of the fugitive Yeh. At Pingyang Yeh 
had joined hands with two corps (Tannee and a force 
of cavalry which had marched south from Manchuria. 
The position was naturally a strong one, and if the 
fortifications had been effectively defended, it might 
well have withstood any attack that the Japanese 
could have brought against it. But Yeh was ignorant 
as well as being a coward, and when General Tso, 
who was the only brave and capable officer in Korea, 
urged him to make preparations for the defence of 
the town he laughed the necessity to scorn. This 
folly was fatal to the Chinese cause in Korea. From 
the east, south, and west three Japanese divisions 
converged on the doomed city. Early on the 
morning of the 15th of September the attacking 
force arrived in position. This was enough for the 
redoubtable Yeh, who straightway performed another 
strategic movement by marching his troops out of 
the north gate of the city, and onwards with all haste 
to the Yalu river, which forms the northern boundary 
of the kingdom. This evil example was followed by 
General Wei, and Tso was thus left alone to face the 
enemy as best he could. He fought well and bravely, 
dying at the head of his men, over whose bodies the 
Japanese streamed into the city. It is some satisfac- 
tion to know that for this gross act of cowardice 
General Wei was beheaded, and that Yeh, though he 
has by a liberal expenditure of money kept his head 
on his shoulders, is still confined in the Board of 
Punishments at Peking. 

Before the fate of Pingyang was decided, the 



NAVAL ENGAGEMENT 



437 



Chinese nad despatched a strong force of troops 
under the convoy of the northern fleet to the Yalu 
river. There they arrived in safety, and were in the 
act of landing when, on the morning of the 17th of 
September, the Japanese fleet hove in sight. The 
position was one in which Admiral Ting, who 
commanded the Chinese fleet, could not resist 




A HOUSE IN MANCHURIA. 



fighting, and he steamed out to meet the enemy, 
having marshalled his fleet in a V-shaped formation, 
with two of his most powerful ironclads in the 
centre. In point of numbers the two fleets were 
equal, twelve ships carrying the nation's flag in each 
case. Both sides fought with determination, but, as 
in every engagement during the war, the Chinese 



438 THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

were from the first out-manoeuvred. The Japanese 
ships, being faster than those of their opponents, were 
able to take up the positions which suited them best, 
and to avoid as far as possible the Chinese guns. In 
these circumstances the result was a foregone con- 
clusion, and by the end of the day five Chinese ships 
were sunk and the rest were in full flight. So severe 
had been the battle that the Japanese ships were 
unable to follow in pursuit, and seven of the 
retreating fleet reached Port Arthur in safety. 

Meanwhile Marshal Yamagata marched north- 
wards from Pingyang, and on the 8th of October 
occupied the town of Wiju on the south bank of the 
Yalu. Korea was now swept clear of Chinese troops, 
and the Japanese were at liberty to carry the war 
into Manchuria. Without meeting with any serious 
opposition Yamagata crossed the Yalu river and 
joined forces with General Nodzu, who on the 25th 
of October gained a signal victory over the Chinese 
at Hushan. From this point the invaders had almost 
a march over, and some of the strongest places in 
Southern Manchuria surrendered without striking a 
blow. 

While Nodzu and Yamagata were thus making 
their triumphal march northwards. General Oyama 
landed in the neighbourhood of Kinchow, a city 
which stands on the narrow neck of land to the 
northward of Port Arthur. On the 5th and 6th of 
November Talienwan and Kinchow opened their 
gates to the invaders, and Oyama was consequently 
set free to attack Port Arthur from the land side. 
The intervening country being very rough and hilly, 



THE FALL OF PORT ARTHUR 



439 



and the roads bad, the difficulties were of no mean 
order, but by the 2ist of the month the troops were 
in position to deHver their assault. Here, as else- 
where, the Chinese failed to distinguish themselves 
for courage, and after some show of resistance, 
deserted the batteries and escaped along the shore 
flanking the Japanese troops. The fall of this place 




A MANCHURIAN CART. 



was a crushing blow to the Chinese cause. It was 
the position on which Li Hungchang had expended 
vast sums of money, and which had always been 
regarded as impregnable. To the Japanese, however, 
the achievement represented only an incident in the 
war, and with unabated energy Oyama waited only 
to garrison the captured stronghold, and then 



440 THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

marched northwards into Manchuria, capturing by 
the way the cities of Fuchow and K'aipingchow. 
This series of disasters induced the Emperor to 
listen to the advice tendered by Li Hungchang that 
overtures of peace should be made to the enemy, and 
two futile missions, the first headed by Mr. Detring, 
of the Customs Service, and the second by a mandarin 
named Chang, were consequently despatched to 
deprecate the further advance of the Japanese troops. 
As neither of these envoys had either plenipotentiary 
powers or appropriate rank they were promptly sent 
back to those who had commissioned them. While 
time was thus wasted the Japanese were repeating 
at Wei-hai-wei, the one fortress remaining to China, 
the tactics which had secured the capture of Port 
Arthur ; but here the task was a more difficult one. 
The Chinese fleet in the harbour was commanded by 
Admiral Ting, who had fought a good fight in the 
battle off Yalu river. His back was now against the 
wall, and he was determined to defend the position 
to the last. Unhappily his command did not extend 
to the soldiers, and when he wished to dismantle the 
outlying forts to prevent the Japanese from taking 
them, and turning their guns on the fortress as they 
had done at Port Arthur, the soldiers refused to 
carry out his instructions. The result was exactly 
as he had foreseen. Without much difficulty the 
Japanese made themselves masters of the outer lines, 
and brought the captured artillery to bear on the 
town ; but Ting still held the citadel and the fleet, 
and, from these standpoints, offered a determined 
resistance to the enemy. It was obvious, however, 



SUICIDE OF TING 



441 



that in the end the Japanese must secure the prize, 
and when this became apparent beyond question 
Ting made final arrangements with Admiral Ito for 
the surrender of the town and fleet (February 7th). 
Having agreed to the necessary conditions, and 
having; secured the lives and freedom of his men, 
Ting committed suicide, an example which was 




A JINRIKSHA. 



followed by his second and third in command. It is 
gratifying to know that Admiral Ito did honour to 
his late gallant opponent by detaching a captured 
Chinese man-of-war to carry the Admiral's remains 
to Chifu. This final disaster brought home to the 
Emperor and his advisers the inevitable conclusion 
that if any remnant of sovereignty was to be left to 



442 THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

them, they must at once make peace with the enemy. 
It also emphasised the lesson which they were 
beginning to learn, that it was useless to try to 
impose any more pseudo plenipotentiaries on Japan, 
and in this dilemma the Emperor turned to the one 
man who, from his rank and abilities, was clearly 
marked out as a fit and proper person to represent 
the Empire in its present straits. With the patriot- 
ism of the kind which has always distinguished him, 
Li Hungchang at once undertook the mission at the 
bidding of his sovereign ; and after some delay, due 
to his efforts to gain European support against any 
demand on the part of Japan for territorial acqui- 
sitions on the mainland, he for the first time in his 
life landed on a foreign shore. 

In the negotiations which followed, Li first at- 
tempted to secure an armistice during the discussion 
of the terms of peace. To this the Japanese made 
no objection on the conditions that the Taku forts, 
Shanhaikwan, and the railway to Tientsin should be 
handed over to the Japanese generals. As the 
fulfilment of these terms would entail the virtual 
command of Peking from the coast, Li declined to 
accept them, and the plenipotentiaries therefore 
proceeded at once to arrange the terms of a 
permanent treaty. With the exception of the 
regrettable incident of the wound inflicted on Li 
by a crazy would-be assassin, the discussion pro- 
ceeded favourably, and on the 17th of April the 
treaty of peace was solemnly signed. By the terms 
of this document the Liaotung peninsula (including 
Port Arthur), Formosa, and the Pescadores were 



THE DOWAGER EMPRESS S JUBILEE 443 

ceded to the conquerors, and an indemnity of 
200,000,000 taels was exacted for the expenses of 
the war. 

Although a strong party in Peking were opposed 
to the ratification of this humiliating treaty, the 
Emperor gave his approval to it, and on the 8th of 
May the ratifications were exchanged at Chifu. But 
though China had thus pledged her honour to the 
terms demanded, a strong appeal was made to the 
European Powers to intervene on her behalf This 
entreaty was partially successful, and the combined 
Governments of Russia, Germany and France were 
induced to remonstrate so strongly and persistently 
against the cession of Liaotung that the Japanese 
thought it wise to restore the peninsula to their con- 
quered foe. 

The disorder and uncertainty which had over- 
clouded the Empire during the continuance of the 
war seriously interfered with one of those national 
rejoicings which appeal with especial force to the 
Chinese mind. In 1895 the Dowager Empress 
completed her sixtieth year, and as such an event is 
of rare occurrence among members of the Imperial 
family, it was early marked out to be the subject of 
a grand national rejoicing. With that respect for 
precedent which so distinguishes the backward- 
looking intellect of the Celestials, the officials of the 
Board of Ceremonies searched in the records for the 
occurrence of a similar event in the annals of the 
dynasty. Their researches were rewarded by finding 
that during the reign of the Emperor Ch'ienlung the 
Dowager Empress had reached the venerable age of 



444 '^HE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

eighty, and that on that occasion, in addition to 
numberless ceremonies, the Emperor on horseback 
had escorted her sedan-chair from her residence to 
the palace, where, dressed in a fantastic garb, he had 
danced and gesticulated before his aged parent. It 
is needless to say that this device was not original, 
but was carried out in imitation of one of the twenty- 
four national models of Filial Piety, who at the age 
of seventy dressed himself up as a child and 
frolicked before his parents in order to cheat them 
into the belief that they were still untouched by age. 
The more sedate part of the ceremonial was loyally 
adopted by the Emperor, who, however, with some 
show of wisdom, declined to disport himself in the 
motley proposed. 

But though the Government was able occasionally 
to divert its attention from the necessities of the hour 
by this and other pageants, it was soon called upon 
again to consider the difficulties which had arisen 
from the war. The three European Powers which 
had posed as friends in need soon made it plain that 
they required a quid pro quo for their intervention in 
the matter of the Liaotung peninsula. In this regard 
Russia was first in the field and demanded the right 
of carrying the Siberian railway through Manchuria 
to Vladivostok with a branch line to Kirin Mukden 
and Port Arthur. France followed next and claimed 
that the Chinese should meet the Tonking railway at 
the frontier and continue it as far as Nanning Fu, in 
the province of Kwangsi. Germany was for the 
moment less ambitious and was satisfied with asking 
for certain mining and financial privileges. To these 



THE IMPOTENCE OF CHINA 



445 



several exactions China was in no position to return 
a negative answer, and indeed her position since the 




A DAGOBA AT MOUKDEN. 



war has been one of limp impotence without any 
guiding principle to direct her policy, or the slightest 



44^ THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

vestige of power to uphold her rights. One of her 
chief needs throughout has been that of money with 
which to pay off the indemnity due to Japan, and 
being completely helpless so far as her own resources 
were concerned, she appealed to England for assist- 
tance. Lord Salisbury, acting on the traditional 
policy of his country towards China, was willing to 
arrange a loan to the amount of twelve millions, and 
the negotiations had advanced several stages when 
Russia intervened, and protested so vehemently 
against the proceedings that the terrorised Chinese 
begged to be allowed to withdraw from their bargain. 
They had, however, sufficient sense to decline a loan 
proffered from St. Petersburg, and eventually the 
money was borrowed, with ;^4,ooo,ooo in addition, 
from the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Cor- 
poration, with the assistance of a German bank. 
But worse difficulties were still in store for the 
distracted country. In an ill moment a native mob 
rose against a German missionary establishment in 
Shantung and murdered two of the priests. This 
incident supplied the excuse wanted by Germany 
for obtaining a substantial hold on the country, and, 
without notice, the Admiral on the station steamed 
into Kiaochow Bay in the incriminated province, and 
took forcible possession of the harbour and its 
surroundings. It was only necessary for the 
Germans to say that they were there, and intended 
staying, to make the Chinese acquiesce, however 
unwillingly, in the arrangement. The example thus 
set was speedily followed. Russia demanded a lease 
of Port Arthur and Talienwan on the same terms as 



FOREIGN AGGRESSIONS 447 

that granted to the Germans at Kiaochow, and as a 
counterblast to this last move Sir Claud Macdonald 
was instructed to ask for a lease of Wei-hai-wei so 
soon as the Japanese, who had been holding it as 
security for the payment of the indemnity, should 
have rendered it again to China. Later still France, 
not to be behindhand, has taken possession of 
Kwangchow Bay on the Lienchow peninsula in 
Kwangtung. The danger of this system of seizing 
at will ports along the coast soon became sufficiently 
obvious even to the Chinese, and in their own 
defence they readily listened to the proposals of Sir 
Claud Macdonald to open three more ports, Yochow 
on the Tungt'ing Lake, Funing Fu on the coast of 
Fuhkien, and Chinwang in the Gulf of Liaotung, to 
which, on their own motion, they added Wusung, 
near Shanghai. In addition to these new trade 
centres, three ports on the west river of Canton had 
already been declared open in compensation for 
the British Shan territory of Kiang Hung, which 
by a breach of treaty had been alienated to 
France. 

The policy of throwing open the whole coast line 
to trade is the only one which will secure the Empire 
against the attack of grasping Powers. By the 
favoured nation clause no power can acquire any 
rights at the treaty ports which are not shared by all 
the signatories. Any attempt therefore to grasp at 
exclusive privileges on the part of any one nation 
would be met by the united opposition of the rest of 
their number, and in the present helpless condition 
of the State, and the known greed of various govern- 



448 THE WAR WITH JAPAN, AND RECENT EVENTS 

ments, this is the only sure and certain means of 
defence that the Empire possesses. 

It is, as it always has been, the true policy of 
England to look to China for commercial privileges 
rather than for territorial aggrandizement, and, with 
the exception of the lease of Wei-hai-wei, every move 
on her part has been in the direction of opening the 
country to the traffic of the world. It was in this 
spirit that in recognition of her share in the new loan 
she urged the Chinese Government to open the 
inland waters to steam navigation ; and to undertake 
that on no conditions should the valley of the 
Yangtsze-kiang be alienated to any foreign Power. 
These terms have been agreed to, and additional 
conditions have been framed, by which it is arranged 
that so long as British trade is predominant in China 
Sir Robert Hart's successors shall be British subjects, 
and that the collection of the Likin tax at the ports 
of Soochow and Kiukiang, with the districts of 
Sunghu and Eastern Chehkiang, as well as the salt 
Likin of Ichang, and of the districts of Hupeh and 
Anhui, shall be placed forthwith under the control 
of the Inspector-General of the Imperial Chinese 
Maritime Customs. It is difficult to over-estimate 
the importance of this last condition. It is a blow 
at that corruption which has hitherto made progress 
in China next to impossible, which has prevented 
the construction of railways, which has hide-bound 
the trade of the country, and which has made the 
army and navy of the Empire the laughing-stocks 
of the world. If once the political administration of 
the provinces could be placed on a sound and honest 



THE PROSPECT IN THE FUTURE 



449 



basis, the progressive leaven which, though small, 
does exist in the country, could gain life and energy, 
and China might yet succeed in occupying the 
position in the world to which her teeming popula- 
tion, her immense wealth, and the industry of her 
people justly entitle her. 




XV 

CURRENT EVENTS 
(APRIL, I901) 

Since the preceding pages were written, matters 
of grave import, affecting not only Europe but the 
Vv'hole civilised world, have occurred in China. 
These events arose, as a matter of sequence, from 
the Japanese war, and may be traced to the revolu- 
tion which then occurred in many Chinese ideas, 
until then regarded as fixed and immutable. One 
of the first effects of the war was to promote 
industrial enterprises, and, in response to a cer- 
tain amount of encouragement, foreign syndicates 
swooped down on the country, demanding conces- 
sions for making railways, working mines, and de- 
veloping the resources of the soil. These were 
readily granted by the Emperor under the advice of 
officials who were enlightened enough to see that 
such works would confer great and lasting benefits 
on the Empire at large. In this way the right of 
working the immense coal-mines of Shansi was 
given to one company; to another was granted the 
privilege of making a trunk line of railway from 

450 



CURRENT EVENTS 45 1 

Peking to Canton ; while to others were given rights 
to dig and to delve in many of the provinces of 
the Empire. 

These privileges were granted mainly with the 
view of improving the financial position of the Em- 
pire, a subject which was occupying the very serious 
attention of the Emperor and his advisers. The 
national revenue was recognised as being barely 
sufficient to meet the demands arising from the for- 
eign debts and the necessary expenditure of the 
Empire, and it was felt that any extra strain would 
tax the resources beyond the breaking point. In 
this emergency the Emperor issued an edict order- 
ing the provincial magnates to recommend to the 
Throne all those whose counsel might be of service 
to the State. The result of this appeal proved to 
be a momentous one. Among the men so recom- 
mended was K'ang Yuwei, who had already distin- 
guished himself as an ardent advocate of reform, 
and as one holding marked and independent views. 
It was at his initiative that a number of scholars, at 
the conclusion of the Japanese war, memorialised 
the Throne, advocating measures for placing the 
Empire in such a position as would make the recur- 
rence of a similar crushing defeat impossible, and in 
his published works he was notorious for having 
criticised the views of the ancient sages with an un- 
sparing pen. 

K'ang's sponsor was the celebrated Weng 
T'ungho, who had been tutor to the Emperor, and 
who certainly was not credited with any undue lean- 
ing towards reform. His credentials, therefore, were 



452 CURRENT EVENTS 

all that could be desired from a Chinese point of 
view, and after a preliminary interview with the 
Tsungli Yamen, in which he failed to make any im- 
pression on the officials, he was introduced into the 
Imperial presence. From this moment his influence 
over the Emperor became supreme, and he was ad- 
mitted daily into the Imperial apartments, where, 
in the absence of all formalities, he was allowed to 
expound his views on the reforms which he consid- 
ered necessary for the rehabilitation of the Empire. 
Unfortunately, like many inexperienced reform- 
ers, K'ang proposed to cure all the existing political 
ills by immediate and drastic measures— for which, 
however, the country was by no means prepared, 
and of which he had failed to count the cost. 
Among many other proposals it was suggested that 
a Central Board of Mining and Railway Operations 
should be formed; that committees should be 
named to superintend the establishment of new 
schools and colleges in the provinces; that full lib- 
erty should be granted to the press, " in order to 
enlighten those in authority and to tear off the veil 
which hides in obscurity the misgovernment of 
officials " ; and that it should be lawful for anyone 
to memorialise the Throne, Unhappily for the Em- 
pire, the Emperor had at this time been deprived of 
the services of a counsellor whose advice might 
have saved him from the pitfalls into which he was 
destined to stumble. On May 3rd (1898), Prince 
Kung died, and with him passed away a moderating 
influence which would have been of inestimable 
value in guiding the affairs of State during the 



CURRENT EVENTS 453 

troublous times which were to follow. Prince 
Kung, who first appeared on the political stage 
during the war of i860, had a clearer insight into 
poHtical matters than most of his colleagues, and 
throughout his career the weight of his counsels in 
all matters in dispute was commonly thrown on the 
side of conciliation and peace. Deprived of the ad- 
vice of this statesman, to whom he had been accus- 
tomed to look for help, the Emperor resigned 
himself entirely to the guidance of K'ang Yuwei, 
and gave his Imperial sanction to the crude pro- 
posals of that enthusiast. 

The result of this too whole-hearted confidence 
speedily became apparent. Acting on the permis- 
sion granted by Edict, a junior member of the 
Board of Rites presented to his Manchu superiors 
a memorial, with the request that it might be for- 
warded to the Throne. In their wisdom, the Presid- 
ent and Vice-President of the Board declined the 
request on the ground that the memorial contained 
revolutionary ideas, and further recommended the 
Emperor to cashier the hot-headed official. But 
the Emperor was just then in one of his most re- 
forming moods, and, instead of accepting the advice 
tendered, dismissed the advisers for having acted in 
defiance of his expressed command. The summary 
dismissal of these high officials created a great stir 
in political circles, and gave the Dowager Empress 
the excuse for intervening for which she had long 
been looking. What domestic steps she took to 
upset the Emperor's authority remains unknown to 
the outer world, an impenetrable veil being drawn 



454 CURRENT EVENTS 

over all that goes on within the vermilion walls of 
the palace. But on the 21st of September (1898), 
there appeared an Edict in the Peking Gazette in 
which the Emperor was made to say: " Our Empire 
is now labouring under great difficulties, and . . . 
this brought us to the thought that Her Majesty 
the Dowager Empress , . . had since the reign 
of the late Emperor T'ungchih twice held the 
regency with much success, and that although the 
Empire was then also labouring under great difficul- 
ties she always issued triumphant and successful 
when grappling with critical questions. Now, we 
consider the safety of the Empire handed down 
to us . . . above all things else; hence, under 
the critical conditions of things now pending, we 
have thrice petitioned Her Majesty graciously to 
accede to our prayer and personally to give us the 
benefit of her wise instructions in the government 
of the Empire. She has, fortunately for the pros- 
perity of the officials and people of the Empire, 
granted our request, and from to-day onwards Her 
Majesty will conduct the affairs of State in the or- 
dinary Throne room." 

The effect of this change was great and instanta- 
neous. The dismissed officials were reinstated in 
office, the temples and monasteries which had been 
converted into schools and colleges were restored to 
their original purposes, the consideration of a na- 
tional parliament was dismissed to the Chinese 
equivalent of the Greek Kalends, the idea of chang- 
ing the national dress was peremptorily vetoed, and 
the house which the Emperor had tried to sweep 



CURRENT EVENTS 455 

and garnish became inhabited by spirits more per- 
versely reactionary than those which had originally 
found their homes there. 

With vindictive cruelty the triumphant Dowager 
ordered six of the prominent reformers to execution 
without any form of trial, and K'ang himself only 
escaped death by a precipitate flight, taken at the 
urgent instance of the Emperor. This Imperial re- 
turn to a reactionary policy was speedily reflected 
in the provinces, where everyone who was in office, 
or who was discontented at not being so, gathered 
to the new regime, and entered heart and soul into 
a war against all reforms, and against anything 
which could be supposed to emanate from the hated 
foreigners. The results of this attitude showed 
themselves in many ways and in numerous direc- 
tions. Missionary establishments were attacked, 
travellers were assaulted, and no opportunity was 
missed of pouring contempt and odium on the 
" foreign devils." Whether in the metropolitan 
province of Chihli, the districts of Shantung, or the 
outlying territories of Yunnan, the attitude of the 
people was the same, and it soon became obvious 
that, unless a change were brought about, a state of 
tension would arise which would make the preserv- 
ation of peace a matter of doubt and difficulty. 

The advisers whom the Empress had called to 
her counsels were naturally those who took her 
view of politics, though not all were actuated by the 
same degree of hatred of reforms and foreigners. 
Prince Ching, an uncle of the Emperor, and Jung- 
lu, the generalissimo of the Peking forces, were men 



456 CURRENT EVENTS 

of comparatively moderate views, while Kang-i and 
Tung Fuhsiang were pronounced irreconcilables. 
It was Kang-i who had persuaded the Empress to 
order the execution of the six reformers, and who, 
with indecent triumph, himself carried the fatal 
warrant to the court where the trial was about 
to be held. After that event the influence of 
this man was observable throughout. It was at 
his instigation that most of the hostile edicts 
were issued, and though the voice was the Em- 
press's voice the words were those of Kang-i. 
In his earlier days, Kang-i had made proposals 
for improving the finances of the Empire, and 
as money was still an urgent requirement this 
self-constituted chancellor of the exchequer was 
commissioned to visit the richest provinces of the 
Empire for the purpose of extracting the uttermost 
farthing that it was possible to wring from the peo- 
ple. A certain amount of succcess attended his 
efforts, more especially in that Eldorado of China, 
the two Kwang Provinces, where he succeeded in 
adding a considerable sum to the annual revenue 
paid into the treasury of Peking. But his presence 
was distasteful to the great Viceroys on the Yang- 
tszekiang, and his threatening manner, which earned 
for him the title of " the great extortioner," out- 
raged their sense of the respect due to their posi- 
tions. It is not unlikely that the anti-Boxer atti- 
tude of these Viceroys may partly be accounted 
for by ill-will created by Kang-i's visits. But, what- 
ever influence his presence in the provinces may 
have effected, his absence from Peking exercised a 



CURRENT EVENTS 457 

temporary moderating bias on the policy of the 
Dowager Empress. Under the wiser influence of 
Prince Ching and Jung-lu her views softened as re- 
gards the vexed questions of foreign policy, and 
matters went well with the Legations and the 
Tsungli Yamen. The lull, however, was only for a 
short time. With the return of Kang-i to Peking 
and the advent on the scenes of the truculent Tung 
Fuhsiang, the anti-foreign spirit broke out again 
with renewed vigour, and ominous rumours became 
rife that a secret scheme was afoot for crushing the 
foreigners in the country, and for wresting back the 
territories leased to the Powers. With a strange 
blindness, these rumours were entirely disregarded, 
and the foreign ministers scarcely thought them 
worthy of being reported to their governments. 
Begotten by ignorance, and wild in its conception, 
the scheme was yet well worthy of attention. A 
large army had been collected at Peking, consisting 
of 72,000 men under the command of Prince Tuan, 
the father of the heir-apparent to the throne, Tung 
Fuhsiang, Kang-i, Li Pingheng, formerly Governor 
of Shantung, and others. These troops were all 
well armed, and drilled sufficiently to give them an 
organisation, and it was with this ** Army of 
Avengers " that the Dowager Empress designed to 
rid the country once and for all of the hated pre- 
sence of foreigners. 

Many matters had, however, to be considered. 
There had for some time been repeated signs of 
revolutionary movements in some of the provinces, 
notably in Kwangtung, and it was felt that a strong 



458 CURRENT EVENTS 

hand was needed here so as to leave the confeder- 
ates free to carry out their plot in the north. Li 
Hung-chang was consequently appointed Viceroy of 
the two Kwang Provinces, and was given full power 
to carry out any measures which he might deem ad- 
visable. This post the veteran statesman willingly 
accepted, being doubtless glad to be out of the way 
when the storm burst, for if his long experience had 
taught him anything, it had taught him that it is 
futile to expect Chinese soldiers to contend success- 
fully against the troops of Europe. Further, an 
excuse was needed to set fire to the train which had 
been so carefully laid. The Chinese have no notion 
of declaring war on a question of policy. They pre- 
fer the more subtle method of instigating banditti 
to attack the foreign settlements, in the hope that 
in the consequent confusion they may find their op- 
portunity. This plan has the advantage of enabling 
them in event of defeat to disavow the onslaught as 
the act of rebels whom the Imperial Government 
would be only too glad to see punished for their 
offences. It is also easy. There are always associa- 
tions, secret and otherwise, which are ready and 
willing to plunder their neighbours' goods at the in- 
stigation of those in authority. On this occasion 
the lot fell on the *' Boxers," or *' Fists of right- 
eous harmony," and with alacrity the members 
obeyed the call. Associations with similar titles 
have long existed in China, and they differ from the 
Triad and more dangerous societies in that they 
have always professed fervent loyalty to the reign- 
ing Dynasty. The Boxers were, therefore, a fit in- 



CURRENT EVENTS 459 

strument for the Empress's use, and after making 
full and exhaustive inquiries as to their numbers, 
equipment, and the sincerity of their profession, she 
determined to employ them. At this time she is- 
sued two edicts which marked with unerring distinc- 
tion the parting of the ways. In one she impressed 
on the local officials the necessity of treating the 
Boxers with exceptional consideration as being a 
loyal confederation which deserved well of the 
country, and in the other she gave the Provincial 
Viceroys authority to declare war on their own 
initiative against foreigners, adding strict injunc- 
tions that they were to oppose at any cost the least 
encroachment on the part of the *' Foreign Devils." 
The effect of the first of these documents was ex- 
actly what was anticipated. Crowds flocked to the 
banners of the Boxers, who emphasised their mission 
by attacking isolated and defenceless Christian com- 
munities in their neighbourhood. As their numbers 
multiplied their courage increased, and being no 
longer content to plunder and ravish in the outlying 
Province of Shantung they took heart of grace and 
marched northward to the neighbourhood of Pe- 
king. This move was probably undertaken by 
order. At least it was well calculated to bring 
about the state of things desired by the Empress. 
Her own troops were quite prepared to carry out 
their part in the scheme and, under the congenial 
leadership of Prince Tuan and Kang-i, marched out 
to meet the Boxers — nominally as foes, but in reality 
as allies. Without crossing swords or firing a shot, 
the two forces amalgamated, an event which boded 



460 CURRENT EVENTS 

ill to the foreign communities at Tientsin and Pe- 
king. Badly armed and quite unorganised, the 
Boxers by themselves were powerless to do more 
than raid and plunder, but the accession to their 
ranks of the large and well-equipped Imperial force 
gave an entirely new complexion to the movement, 
and converted a mob into an army. The effect of 
this change instantly became apparent. Instead of 
sporadic attacks on isolated posts, a plan of cam- 
paign was adopted, and strong positions in the 
country between Peking and Taku were occupied 
by the troops, supported by their irregular allies. 
Tientsin was invested, the railway between that 
place and Peking was occupied, and an attempt was 
made to pour large reinforcements into the Taku 
forts at the mouth of the river. Fortunately, this 
last manoeuvre, together with a plan for placing 
mines in the river, was forestalled by the allied ad- 
mirals. With wise promptitude, they presented an 
ultimatum to the commander of the forts to the 
effect that any such action would be regarded as an 
act of war. Twenty-four hours were allowed the 
Commandant for his answer. It came one hour short 
of the allotted time. At one o'clock on the morn- 
ing of the i8th of June — Waterloo day — the forts 
opened fire on the allied fleets. For seven hours the 
battle raged, and at the end of that time the forts 
were silenced, and a detachment of sailors which 
had been landed carried the position by assault. 

War was now practically declared, and the allied 
admirals organised a force in the field. At the 
head of two thousand men Admiral Seymour 



CURRENT EVENTS 46 1 

marched on Tientsin, and, having entered that city, 
started northward to relieve the beleaguered minis- 
ters at Peking. In this he was unsuccessful, and 
after some severe fighting was obliged to retire. 
Meanwhile, a second force occupied Tientsin, which 
was again closely invested by the Chinese, and it 
v/as only by the arrival of a strong reinforcement 
that the city was relieved from the pressure of the 
enemy (June 23rd). After a few hours' rest, a por- 
tion of the relieving force advanced to the assistance 
of Admiral Seymour and, having effected a junction 
with him, returned in his company to Tientsin, 

Meanwhile, events had been marching apace 
within the walls of Peking, On June i6th, the 
Dowager Empress called together a Council, at 
which she personally presided, and which she 
opened with these ominous words; '* The foreign 
Powers have browbeaten and persecuted us in such 
a manner that we cannot endure it any longer. We 
must therefore combine to fight all foreigners to the 
last, to save our * face ' in the eyes of the world. All 
our Manchu princes, dukes, nobles, and ministers, 
high and low, are unanimous in the determination 
of war to the knife, and I approve of their patriotic 
choice. I therefore give you all this announcement, 
and expect all to do their duty to their country." 
This truculent address gave the keynote to the 
Council, where, however, at first, the Chinese mem- 
bers attempted to stem the current of Manchu 
hatred. But the decree had gone forth, and after 
some debate, in which the Emperor took part, 
always on the side of peaceful measures, it was 



462 CURRENT ENENTS 

determined to support the Boxers with Imperial 
troops in their war against foreigners. Four days 
later (June 20th), Baron von Ketteler, the German 
Minister, was murdered in the streets of Peking 
when on his way to visit the Tsungli Yamen. This 
act, which was the direct outcome of the Council of 
the i6th, was speedily followed up by still more 
violent measures. On the 21st, a decree was issued 
ordering Yung-lu, as Generalissimo of the grand 
army of the North, to enter Peking and formally to 
attack the Legations. Against this step the Em- 
peror protested on his knees, but his advice was 
ignored, and the command was issued and obeyed. 
Two Chinese Ministers, Hsii and Yiian, who had 
strenuously resisted the warlike policy of the Em- 
press, were at this time, and for no other offence, 
beheaded without trial, and a reign of terror ensued. 
Edicts appeared in quick succession ordering the 
indiscriminate massacre of all foreigners in the coun- 
try, and in many parts every effort was made to 
carry out this bloodthirsty decree. In Sharsi, the 
Governor, Yiihsien, who was an extreme reactionary, 
collected as many missionaries and others as were 
within reach, and set an example to his executioners 
by cutting down a number of victims with his own 
hand. But there were some conspicuous excep- 
tions. The two great Viceroys on the Yangtsze- 
kiang, Chang Chihtung and Liu Kaunzi, together 
with Tuanfang, the Manchu Governor of Shensi, 
took upon themselves the responsibility of disobey- 
ing the decree. And not only so, but they directed 
their subordinates to protect and befriend all for- 



CURRENT EVENTS 463 

eigners residing in their districts. The result of 
this humane and independent conduct was that not 
a single foreigner lost his life in the five provinces 
under the control of these true patriots. 

The siege of the Legations was now formally en- 
tered upon. Barricades were thrown up on the city- 
walls and in the streets, and a close cordon was 
drawn round the Legation area. Guns were 
mounted, and riflemen occupied every position 
from which they could attack and harass the be- 
sieged. Meanwhile, the foreigners, with the assist- 
ance of several hundred native Christians, whose 
admission within the walls had been at first dis- 
countenanced by the British Minister, threw up 
hasty defences, and armed themselves with every 
weapon obtainable. The centre of this defence 
was the British Legation, which was the largest for- 
eign residence in the capital and which was manned 
by the greatest number of defenders. For nearly 
two months this and the other buildings were sub- 
jected to a constant fire of guns and rifles, and the 
only marvel is that one stone was left standing on 
one another, or that a single occupant should have 
survived. If the Chinese troops had brought into 
action all the guns at their disposal, or if they had 
assaulted the defences they must have destroyed 
the garrison. But throughout the siege some power 
appeared to be holding them back. It was observed 
that on several occasions when the Chinese gunners 
succeeded in getting the effective range and direc- 
tion they withdrew the gun or guns ; and while they 
brought into action only weapons of a comparatively 



464 CURRENT EVENTS 

antiquated pattern, it was discovered after the siege 
was over that they were in possession of a large sup- 
ply of guns of the newest and most approved design. 
There was plainly displayed a desire not to carry 
the attack to extremities lest the Government 
should be placed beyond the reach of repentance. 

The destruction wrought, however, by the hos- 
tilities was extensive and thorough. Fire, the great 
enemy on such occasions, carried havoc through the 
streets. Whole districts were destroyed by flames, 
and some of the richest parts of the city were laid 
desolate. The great danger which beset the British 
and the other Legations was that the surrounding 
flames should spread to their buildings, and for the 
sake of protection it became necessary in many 
cases to destroy the neighbouring houses. Close to 
the wall of the British Legation stood the Hanlin 
College, the most venerable home of literature in 
the Empire, and the depository of a priceless collec- 
tion of books and manuscripts. Its proximity, how- 
ever, constituted a danger, and a proposal, in the 
interest of the Legation, was made to demolish it. 
This, in view of its great antiquity, the British 
Minister could not bring himself to sanction. But 
he might have spared his scruples, for a few days 
later the Chinese deliberately set fire to its ancient 
halls and library. In a few hours the destruction 
was complete, and nothing remained of its contents 
but a few volumes, which were saved by the exer- 
tion of members of the Legation. 

During the siege many attempts were made to in- 
duce the foreign ministers and their staff to leave 



CURRENT EVENTS 465 

their entrenchments. They were invited to take 
refuge in the Tsungli Yamen where, they were as- 
sured, they would be perfectly safe; at another 
time an ultimatum was presented to them, ordering 
them to leave the capital within twenty-four hours; 
and later an Imperial Edict was published, offering 
them a safe conduct to Tientsin. Happily, they re- 
fused to yield to these threats and inducements, and 
preferred to defend the walls of the Legations rather 
than trust themselves to the tender mercies of the 
Chinese. One of the most infamous features of the 
crisis was that at the very time when this attack on 
the foreign position was being most actively pressed 
Lo Fengluh was assuring Lord Salisbury that the 
Chinese Government was " giving effective protec- 
tion to the British Legation ", and Wu Tingfang 
was making similar protestations at Washington. 
So close were the besieging lines held that for many 
weeks no communication passed between the Lega- 
tions and the outer world, and it was not until the 
lOth of August that definite news of the approach 
of the cosmopolitan relief expedition reached the 
beleagu ^red garrison. This news was speedily veri- 
fied, and on August 14th the troops entered the city. 
" VVe knew," writes Mr, Stanley Smith, one of the 
besieged, "that the Allies would advance m separate 
columns, and we were on the quivive of excitement, 
knowing that any moment now the troops might ar- 
rive. Luncheon, the hard luncheon of horseflesh, 
came on, and we had just finished when the cry 
rang through the Legations, " The British are com- 
ing! ' and there was a rush to the entrance and up 



466 CURRENT EVENTS 

Canal Street towards the Water Gate. The stal- 
wart forms of the General and his staff were enter- 
ing by the Water Gate, followed by the 1st 
Regiment of Sikhs and the 7th Rajputs. They 
passed down Canal Street, and amid a scene of in- 
describable emotion marched to the British Lega- 
tion. The siege had been raised." 

With the cessation of hostilities began the far 
more difficult task of arranging terms of peace. The 
indignation of the whole civilised world had been 
aroused at the atrocities which had been committed 
on the persons and properties of foreigners. Be- 
sides those who had lost their lives in the course of 
the campaign, it was brought to light that two hun- 
dred and forty men, women, and children in the 
interior of the country had been massacred under 
circumstances of great brutality, and that the same 
fate had overtaken no fewer than 30,000 native 
Christians. In no way did the Chinese Government 
show that it realised the heinousness of the of- 
fences of which its agents had been guilty, and 
with a light heart it expressed desire for a return to 
the former friendly relations which had existed. 
Prince Ching and Li Hungchang were appointed 
plenipotentiaries, and were ordered to proceed at 
once to the conclusion of terms of peace. 

Meanwhile, the Court had fled to Hsian Fu, in the 
province of Shansi, and the foreign Plenipotentiaries 
found their task of arranging suitable terms of peace 
much complicated by the desertion of his capital by 
the Emperor. To the Chinese request for a speedy 
conclusion of a convention, the foreign ministers re- 



CURRENT EVENTS 467 

plied by insisting on the infliction of suitable pun- 
ishments on those officials who had been responsible 
for the Boxer outbreak and the consequent outrages, 
as a preliminary to all negotiations. This was con- 
ceded, and it was arranged that Prince Tuan, Duke 
Lan, and General Tung Fuhsiang should be sen- 
tenced to decapitation, it being understood that 
these sentences would be commuted to banishment 
for life ; that Prince Chuang and two others were to 
be strangled ; that Ch'ihsiu and Hsii Ch'engyii were 
to be beheaded at Peking; and that Yiihsien was to 
suffer the same fate. Besides these officials, several 
others in the provinces were executed for their 
offences. 

This matter having been conceded, the following 
conditions were further formulated by the foreign 
ministers: (i) That an indemnity should be paid; 
(2) that the Taku forts should be dismantled ; (3) 
that a monument should be set up to the German 
Minister on the spot where he was assassinated ; (4) 
that stone tablets should be erected wherever mis- 
sionaries had been murdered ; (5) that the importa- 
tion of arms into the country should be prohibited ; 
(6) that the Legation guards should be strength- 
ened, and permanent troops established to keep 
open the road to Tientsin; (7) that the Tsungli 
Yamen should be abolished ; and (8) that the min- 
isters should have direct access to the Emperor. 
These terms are still (April, 1901) under discussion, 
and considerable differences of opinion have arisen 
on the points raised among some of the foreign 
negotiators, notably on the part of the representative 



468 CURRENT EVENTS 

of Russia. That Power has, since the occupation 
of Port Arthur, been steadily strengthening her 
position in Manchuria, and in return for her good 
offices at the Council board at Peking the Chinese 
Plenipotentiaries agreed to give her practically a 
free hand in that dependency. They even went the 
length of acceding to the terms of a convention by 
which the whole administration of the country was 
to be transferred to the representatives of the Tsar. 
Happily, the publication in the London Times of 
this document aroused the susceptibilities of the 
other Treaty Powers, and as the result of their 
urgent remonstrances the Emperor finally declined 
to sign the agreement. 

At present, the negotiations at Peking are proceed- 
ing slowly but surely, and evidences are not wanting 
to show that there is growing up, even at the Court, 
a recognition of the necessity for reforms. Within 
the last few days (April, 1901) an Imperial Edict has 
been published, sanctioning progressive measures, 
and a strong feeling exists in the country that it is 
only by the adoption of European ideas and West- 
ern methods of administration that the country can 
be saved from ruin and decay. 



INDEX 



A. 

Ahluta, Empress, 373 ; death of, 
384 ; funeral of, 391 

Akkadia, 2 

Akwei, General, 156, 159, 160 ; 
defeats the Miaotzu, 160, 162 

Alcock, Consul, 238 

Alikun, General, 156 

Amaral, Signor, murder of at 
Macao, 241 

Amherst, Lord, ambassador to 
Peking, 195 ; arrival at Yuan- 
ming-yuan, 197 ; dismissal of, 
197 

Amiot, expelled from Peking, 191 

Amoy, capture of, 226 

Amursana, 143 ; flies to Russian 
territory, 144 ; death of, 144 

Anstruther, Captain, R.A., 222 

Arrow Affair, the, 260 

Arthur, Port, capture of, 438 

Asan, battle of, 435 

Attiret, Jesuit, 148 

Audience Question, 375 ; recep- 
tion of ministers, 377 ; recep- 
tion within the palace, 425 

B. 

Babylonia, its affinities with 

China, 3 
Bank-notes, Early Chinese, 31 
Bashpa's Alphabet, 37 
Beal, Rev. S., 20 
Books, the burning of the, 15 ; 

recovery of the classical, iT 



Bowring, Sir J., 258 

Bremer, Sir Gordon, 219, 221 ; 
captures Bogue Forts, 224 

British, opening of commercial 
relations with China, 172 ; A 
B. gunner strangled, 177 ; con- 
cessions to the, 448 

Bruce, Sir F., arrival at Shan- 
ghai of, 275, presents ulti- 
matum, 277 

Buddhism, introduction of, 18 

Burgevine, 320 ; dismissed from 
force, 321 

Burlingham, Mr., accepts office 
as Chinese envoy, 356 

Burma, Upper, ceded to Eng- 
land, 411 



Canton, opposition to foreigners 
at, 241 ; refusal to admit 
foreigners, 258 ; taken, 262 ; 
taken a second time, 267 

Carpini, John de Piano, 27 

Castiglione, Jesuit, 148 

Catchpole, consul in China, 173 

Cathay, 23 

Cathcart, Colonel, ambassador to 
Peking, 178 

Catholic missionaries, the first, 

^27 

Centurion, H.M.S., arrival in 
China of, 174 

Chang Ch'ien's visit to Central 
Asia, 18 



469 



470 



INDEX 



Chao, General, his victories in 
Central Asia, 144 ; his death, 

145 
Cheng Chihlung, 94 ; turns 

pirate, 95 ; made State prisoner 

at Peking, 95 
Cheng, General, 325 
Cheng Te, General, 168 
Chengt'ung, Emperor, taken 

prisoner, 47 
Chen Kwojui, 364 ; his career, 

367 

Chiach'ing, Emperor, accession 
of, 189 ; attempts to assassinate, 
190 ; death of, 199 ; his cha- 
racter, 200 

Chiaching, Emperor, death of, 

54 
Chieh Kwei, Emperor, 6 
Ch'ienlung, Emperor, accession 

of, 139 ; his clemency, 139 ; 

his war with Burma, 156 ; 

abdication of, 187 
Ch'in, dynasty of, 14 
Chin, Western, dynasty of, 19 
Ch'ing, dynasty, establishment 

of, 80 
Chinhai, capture of, 227 
Chinkiang, capture of, 230 
Chow, dynasty of, 2 
Chow Sin, Emperor, 7 
Christianity, progress of, 58 
Chung How, 363 ; sent to Paris, 

368 
Chunghwan, his march on 

Peking, 76 ; plot against him, 

77 ; his execution, 78 
Chung Wang, 313, et fass. ; his 

death, 333 
Cochin China, embassies from, 

9 ; conquered, 18 : revolution 

in, 165 
Confucius, 8 ; his birth, 11 ; his 

influence, 11 ; his teaching, 

12 

D. 

Dalai Lama, the, 117, 169 
D'Andrade, Don Fernao Peres, 
48 



Davis, Sir J., 235 

Dowager Empress's Jubilee 

(1752), 146 
Dutch Embassy (1664), 100 



E. 

Elepoo, 228, 231 

Elgin, Lord, appointed ambas- 
sador, 263 ; arrives at Hong- 
kong, 264 ; presents ultimatum, 
266 ; goes to Peiho, 270 ; 
arrives at Tientsin, 271 : signs 
treaty, 272 ; again appointed 
ambassador, 278 ; arrives at 
Tientsin, 287 ; advances to- 
wards Peking, 289 ; signs 
treaty in Peking, 305 

Elliot, Captain, 212 

Empire, establishment of, 15 



F. 

Fahsien, his expedition to India, 

19 
Famine in North China, 393 
Fei, General (1695-96), 117 
FHnt, Mr., goes to Tientsin, 175 ; 

deportation of, 176 
Flood, the Great, 5 
Foochow, destruction of Chinese 

fleet at, 407 
Formosa, fighting in, 163 ; 

massacre of English in, 234 
B'ournier, Captain, negotiates in 

matter of Tongking, 404 
Fuhsi, the inventor of writing, 

4 
Fu K'angan, General, 164, 170 
Fu Te, General, 162 



Galdan, the chief of the Eleuths, 
III ; defeat of, 116 ; death of, 
120 

George HL's letter, 194 

Gerbillon, 112 

Go Huei, General, 168 

Goloyken's Mission, 195 



INDEX 



47^ 



Gordon, General, takes com- 
mand of Ever Victorious 
Army, 321 ; successful cam- 
paign, 322 ; takes Kunshan, 
326 ; retires from force, 328 ; 
retakes command, 329 ; re- 
signs, 331 

Gough, Sir H., 225 

Grant, Sir Hope, takes command 
of British force, 278 

Great Wall, 16 

Grosvenor, Mr., 387 

Gurkhas, war with the, 168 ; 
submission of the, 171 

H. 

Hamilton, Port, 412 

Han, dynasty of, 16 

Hangki, 286 

Hanlin College, 41 

Hart, Sir R., 408 

Hideyoshi, his invasion of Korea, 
56 

Ho, minister, 184 ; arrested and 
put to death, 185 

Hongkong, ceded to England, 
221 

Hope, Admiral, defeated at 
Taku, 277 

Hsia Dynasty, 6 

Hsian Fu, Nestorian monument 
at, 21 

Hsienfeng, Emperor, accession 
of, 255 ; death of, 308 

Hsi Wang, rebel leader, 102 

Hung Hsiuts'uan, 242 ; his suc- 
cessful advance, 245 ; captures 
Nanking, 247 ; his death, 333 

Hungwu, Emperor, 41 ; death 
of, 43 

Hwangti, Emperor, 4 

Hwangchukki, murder of Eng- 
lishmen at, 241 

I. 

India, expedition to, 19 

J- 

Japanese invasion, 53 
Jehangir, 203 



Jenghiz Khan, his rise to power, 
24 ; subdues Hsia, 26 ; retires 
to river Onon, 26 ; conquers 
Kashgar, Yarkand, and Kuo- 
ten, 26 ; advances into Georgia 
and Western Europe, 26 ; his 
death, 26 

Jesuits, their investments, 127 ; 
their contributions to litera- 
ture, 129 

K. 

K'aifeng Fu, fall of, 81 

K'anghsi, Emperor, his religious 
views, 61, 105 ; prayer to 
Shangti, 118 ; his diamond 
jubilee, and death, 121 ; his 
literary works, 122 

Kaoti, Emperor, his rise to 
power, 16 ; his general policy, 
17 ; his protection of literature, 
17 

Keppel, Sir Harry, his attack on 
native junks, 264 

Kiaochow, seized by Germany, 
447 

Kinshun, General, 351 

Kishen, his career, 219, 225 

K'itan Tartars, 23 

Kiying, at Nanking, 231 ; at Can- 
ton, 236, 242 ; dismissed from 
office, 255 

Korea, embassies from, 9 ; out- 
break in, 397 ; Ex-Regent de- 
ported, 399 ; revolution in, 
409 ; convention with, 410 ; 
war in, 433 

Koxinga, 97 ; his victory over 
the Manchus, 98 ; his defeat 
and death, 102 

Kublai Khan, 29 ; invades and 
conquers China, 32 ; extent of 
his empire, 32 ; his war 
against Burma, 33 ; defeated 
by the Japanese, 34 ; his re- 
ligious toleration, 34; his 
death, 37 

Kung, Prince, 255 ; in command 
at Peking, 300 ; opposes 
palace clique, 306 ; effects a 



472 



INDEX 



coup d'etat, 310 ; dismissed 
and reinstated, 382 ; again dis- 
missed, 404 ; his proposed 
reforms (1866), 426 
Kunshan, taken by Gordon, 326 
Kwanghsii, Emperor, accession 
of, 385 ; marriage of, 418 ; 
reception of foreign ministers 
by, 424 
Kwo Sungtao,appointed minister 
at St. James's, 391 

L. 

Lao Tsze, founder of Taoism, 14 

Legal reforms, 42 

Li, rebel leader, captures Peking, 
83 ; defeated by Wu Sankwei, 
87 ; his death, 88 

Li Hanchang, 388 

Li Hungchang, opposes T'aip'- 
ing, 251, 320 ; his perfidy 
at Soochow, 330 ; given a 
yellow jacket, 331 ; disbands 
Ever Victorious Army, 334 ; 
campaign against Nienfei 
rebels, 338 ; takes command 
at Tientsin, 365 ; alarm at 
Japanese reforms, 400 ; sent 
as envoy to Japan, 442 ; con- 
cludes peace, 442 

Lin, Commissioner, 215 ; his 
dealings with Captain Elliot, 
217 ; disgraced, 219 ; de- 
nounced by Emperor, 221 

Li T'aipo, poet, 22 

Loans, questions connected with, 
446 

Loch, Lord, in Tungchow, 293 ; 
made prisoner, 294 ; in the 
Hsing Pu, 295 ; released, 303 

M 

Ma, Mahommedan rebel, 341 
Macao, taken by the English, 193 
Macartney, Lord, ambassador to 
Peking, 178 ; arrives at Tient- 
sin, 180 ; arrives at Peking, 
182 ; received by Emperor 
at Jehol, 183 ; returns to 
England, 186 



Mahommedan rebellion, in 
Yunnan, 339 ; suppression of, 
347 ; outbreak of in Shensi 
and Kansu, 348 

Maigrot, Bishop, 124 ; visits 
court in Mongolia, 125 

Manchus, the, rise of, 64 ; retreat 
of, 78 ; take possession of 
Peking, 88 ; successes of, 94 

Mangu, Emperor, 29 

Manning, visits Lhasa, 199 

Marco Polo, arrives at Kublai's 
court, 29 ; reception by the 
Khan, 30 ; governor of Yang- 
chow , 35 ; returns to Venice, 
36 

Margary, Mr., murder of, 387 

Medhurst, consul, at Yangchow, 
358 

Mencius, his political views, 6, 
8, 10 

Menzes, Don Metello Souza y, 

135 

Miaotzii, 157 ; their manners 
and customs, 159 ; campaign 
against, 159 ; treacherous con- 
duct towards, 161, 204. 

Ming dynasty, beginnings of, 
39 ; culture of, 60 

Mingti, Emperor, his dream, 18 

Missionaries, dissensions be- 
tween, 62, 124 ; difficulties of, 
369 ; murder of, at Hwashan, 

431 
Mongolia, campaign in, 349 
Mongols, 24 
Mu Wang, reflections on his 

conduct, 9 ; his journey to the 

West, 10 

N. 

Napier, Lord, 207 ; arrives at 
Canton, 208 ; death at Macao, 
212 

Nestorian Christians, 21 ; cor- 
ruption of, 28 

Nerchinsk, treaty of, 113 

Nien, General, 132 ; feast given 
to, 133 ; put to death, 134 

Nienfei rebels, 337 



INDEX 



473 



Ningpo, occupation of, 227 
Ningjman, defence of, 74 
Nurhachu, 65 ; his seven griev- 
ances against the Mings, 68 ; 
hi« victory over the Chinese, 
70 ; his death, 74. 

O. 

Opium, trade in, 210, 213 
Osborn, Captain Sherard, 336 



Pa Chung, General, 168 ; com- 
mits suicide, 169 

Pan Ch'ao, march to Khoten,i8 

Panshen Lama, death at Peking, 
166 

Parkes, Sir Harry, 238 ; appointed 
consul at Canton, 259 ; taken 
prisoner, 294 

Pereira, 112 

Philippines, the, arrival of Span- 
iards, 56 ; massacre of Chris- 
tians at, 57 

Pingyang, capture of, 436 

Portuguese, mission to Peking, 
48 ; massacre of, 50 ; aid sent 
to Peking, 71 

Pottinger, Sir H., minister, 226 ; 
concludes treaty of Nanking, 
232 ; sails for England, 234 

Q- 

Queue, institution of, 72 

R. 

Railways, Wusung line, 395 ; its 
destruction, 396 

Regency, the, 383 

Remusat, 20 

Ricci, 51 ; death of, 52 

Rome, See of, 21 ; embassy to 
the Chinese Court, 21 

Rubruquis, Friar, 27 ; his de- 
scription of the Chinese, 28 

Russia, embassy (1664), 100 ; 
defeat of at Albazin, 113 ; 
college at Peking, 203 ; con- 
cessions to, 444 



S. 

Sankolinsin, 279, 293 

Schaal, J. A., his arrival in China, 
60 ; his death in prison, 61 

Senhouse, Sir F., 225 

Seymour, Sir M., takes Canton, 
262 

Shang dynasty, the, 7 

Shennung, Emperor, 4 

Shih Hwangti, 14 

Shih K'ofa, champions the Ming 
cause, 91 ; his attempted de- 
fence of Yangchow, 93 

Shun, Emperor, 5 

Shunchih, Emperor, 95 ; death 
of, lOI 

Siamese tribute, 192 

Soochow, Negotiations for sur- 
render of, 329 ; capture of, 
330 

Sung, Minister, 199 

Sung dynasty, the, 22 

T. 

Taku forts, capture of, 271 ; 
defeat before, 277 ; recapture, 
284 
Taki, concubine of Chow Sin, 7 
T'aip'ing, establishment of 
dynasty of, 248 ; unsuccessful 
advance on Peking, 250 ; later 
successes, 315 
T'ang dynasty, the, literature of, 
21 ; conquests, 21 ; persecu- 
tion of Christians, 22 
T'ang, the " complete," 7 
Taokwang, Emperor, his acces- 
sion, 201 ; his martial habits, 
202 ; his death, 255 
Tashilumbo, taken by the 

Gurkhas, 169 
Terrien de Lacouperie, Pro- 
fessor, 2 
Texeira, Gonsalvo de, 70 
Three kingdoms, the, 19 
Tientsin, massacre at, 361 ; 
j rioters executed, 365 
Tinghai, recapture of, 227 
Ting, Admiral, 437 ; commits 
suicide, 441 



474 



INDEX 



Tongking, war in, 403 ; con- 
clusion of peace, 408 

Tourgots, emigration of, 149 ; 
flight of, 150 

Tournon, C. M. de, 126 ; suspi- 
cious illness of, 127 ; issues 
decree against Jesuits, 128 ; 
his death, 129 

Treaty ports, new, 447 

Tseng Kwofan, opposes T'aip'- 
ings, 246 ; captures Nanking, 
333 ; at Tientsin, 363 

Tsinliang, a military heroine, 72 

Tso Chungt'ang, 350 ; his delibe- 
rate advance into Central 
Asia, 352 ; his successful cam- 
paign, 353 

Tsungli Yamen, establishment 
of, 354 ; its characteristics, 

355 

Tu, Mahommedan rebel, 341 

Tu Fu, poet, 22 

T'ungchih, Emperor, his mar- 
riage, 371 ; his death, 383 

V. 

Verbiest, 105 

Vladislavitche, Count Sava, 
arrives at Peking, 134 

W. 

Wade, Sir Thomas, goes in ad- 
vance of army to Tungchow, 
289; on the Tientsin massacre, 
365 ; arranges difficulty be- 
tween China and Japan, 381 ; 
on the murder of Margary, 
389 ; hauls down his flag, 390 

Walsham, Sir J., 429 

Ward, the Ever Victorious Army, 
317 ; death of, 320 

Weddell, Captain, takes the 
Bogue Forts, 173 



Wei-hai-wei, surrender of, 441 

White Lily Sect, 190, 237 

Wu, Empress, 22 

Wu Sankwei, 79 ; in command 
at Ningyuan, 83 ; his slave girl 
treated as spoil, 84 ; his anger, 
86 ; defeats the rebel Li, 87 ; 
pursues Kwei Wang into 
Burma, 98 ; summoned to 
Peking, 107 ; rebels, 108 ; 
death of, 109 



Xavier, arrives at Sanshan, 51 



Yakoob Khan, 349 

Yalu, battle of, 437 

Yangchow, taken by the Man- 
chus, 93 ; riot at, 357 

Yangti, Emperor, constructor of 
canals, 20 

Yangtszekiang, riots on the, 428 

Yao, Emperor, 5 

Yeh, governor of Canton, 240 ; 
refuses to receive Parkes, 259 ; 
capture of, 268 ; exile and 
death, 268 

Yellow river, 381 

Yin, or Shang, dynasty, the, 7 

Yii, Emperor, 5 

Yuan-ming-yuan, occupation of, 
301 ; burning of, 304 

Yule, Sir Henry, 27 

Yungcheng, Emperor, accession 
of, 122 ; edict against Roman 
Catholics, 123 ; deports mis- 
sionaries, 132 ; address to the 
Jesuits, 135 ; disasters to the 
house of, 137 ; his death, 138 

Yunglo, 45 ; his Encyclopaedia, 
46 

Yunnan, 210 



The Story of the Nations. 



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